


Dr Gaster

by PsychoMeows



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Babybones (Undertale), Dadster, Gaster tries his best, Gen, Good W. D. Gaster, Pre-Accident W. D. Gaster, Scientist W. D. Gaster, Veteran Gaster, Veteran Grillby (Undertale), skelebros
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-06
Updated: 2020-02-23
Packaged: 2020-11-25 22:10:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 21
Words: 83,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20919434
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PsychoMeows/pseuds/PsychoMeows
Summary: Gaster fights in the war and loses everything he loves. He becomes desperate to free the Underground and get revenge on humanity but that soon changes when an experiment takes a turn Gaster didn't expect, now he has a child to look after...





	1. War

Wingdings Gaster stood on the battlefield a sword in one hand, his other raised as he threw a human into his brother's bone wall with blue magic. The human screamed out in pain as the bones went right through him, blood came out splattering onto the muddy ground. The human coughed up some more blood before he died.

Wingdings let out a sigh of relief, the human had come up behind him, sword ready to take his head, if he hadn't reacted as fast as he did then he could've died...

But now was not the time to relax. They were losing, losing terribly. How many members of his race had died already? How many of them were his family? He'd stopped counting...

Wingdings had never wanted to be a solider. He was the youngest sibling, the youngest cousin, still in his last year of school, not long turned eighteen. He just wanted to pass his exams and get a job while he studied further and saved up money so he could move to the capital and get into the best university, then he'd become the best scientist the world had seen.

Yet here he was standing in which had once been a town filled with monsters but was now nothing but a field of dust and blood, devoid of hopes and dreams. His armour that had once been shining and clean was covered with mud, the blood of humans and the dust of his fallen comrades. How many had he killed now? 50? 100? 1000? How high was his LOVE?

He felt no regret. Humans were evil; they'd shown up in his peaceful town of skeletons one day and began killing everyone. Not just people who fought back but they killed the elderly, the disabled... the children.

Several of his siblings had kids of their own, his little nieces and nephews, all of them murdered by humans. His father was killed before his eyes, his mother had shouted at him to run, that she'd hold them back. His last memory of her was of her summoning up a large bone wall as he ran and her scream he heard in the distance.

He swore revenge on the humans, all the survivors had. They'd fled to the next town where they learnt that humans had declared war, the old King had died of disease a couple of months before and the new King, Asgore, still had a lot to learn, the humans took this as a weakness and attacked several towns and villages in the same way as they had done to Wingdings's. The humans showed no mercy, they killed everyone. Most of the survivors from these places had joined the army.

Three of Wingdings's cousins, two of his sisters and one of his brothers had survived. He'd never had friends, he was the nerdy kid, who took more interest in science books than in people, he was a teacher's pet and spoke in a weird font, needing sign langue to talk with others. He was bullied but he never really minded, he had no need for friends. His bullies were never that bad, they didn't deserve death. All they had done was call him names and exclude him.

There wasn't a whole lot of skeletons left. His family had tried to tell him not to join up with them, to instead protect the weaker monsters and assist them in their escape and to help with healing the wounded, he was the best healer in his family, after all. Wingdings had none of that, why should he run while the others fought? They'd tried to tell him that some skeletons had to live and that he was too young to fight and how he was so smart that monster kind couldn't lose such a great mind. Yet Wingdings still had none of that, his family fought, he'd fight. Then, once the war was over he'd become a great scientist. The Great Dr Wingdings Gaster...

Yet here he was in a losing battle. He'd already lost two cousins and a sister. He didn't know where his other cousin and sister where, but his brother, Tempus, was beside him.

"wingdings? are you alright?" He called.

"I'M FINE!" Wingdings called back signing with a pair of magic hands. He wasn't really fine, he hated this, he didn't want to see any monsters die and no one would say it but the number of skeletons on the field was slowly decreasing.

Wingdings was beginning to feel like that this was a bad idea, he didn't want to die and he had a lot he still wanted to do. But no matter how much he wanted to live he could sill die, pointlessly.

It was too late to turn back now, however. So his only choice was to fight on. He let his mind drift away, acted without thinking as he fought side by side with his brother. Bones flying towards their enemies, arrows flying back at them. They threw the humans around with blue magic, humans came at them with their blades. The brothers only used the swords only when they had to, like when they were casting an offensive spell and had to defend at the same time or whenever a human got too close.

Wingdings fought in a zoned out state, he didn't want to think of the death he was causing, so he didn't think. But a scream pulled him out of it. He turned to face the scream and saw the exact moment when three humans thrust their swords into his cousin's chest and he turned to dust. Wingdings let out a scream of his own and summoned a huge blaster, a weapon of his own design.

The humans turned to him a look of fear in their eyes.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT! BURN IN HELL!" He yelled not bothering to sign, what difference would that make? These humans were about to die anyway. The blast killed more than just three humans, Wingdings didn't know or care how many, he just knew that his LV had just increased and so he zoned out again and went on killing. He hid within his own mind too scared to really face what was going on, to scared to face the fact he just lost someone he loved, again.

It wasn't long before he zoned back in again this time it was because he felt someone pull his arm. He turned to attack but saw that it was his sister, Kristen, and stopped. She pulled both of her brothers aside and knelt behind a broken wall.

She had been promoted to captain just before this battle, she was strong but wounded and limping, before Wingdings had a chance to say something about it she interrupted.

"WE'RE LOSING, WE CAN'T WIN. WE'VE BEEN GIVEN THE ORDER TO RETREAT. MY DEAR BROTHERS, YOU MUST GO."

"not without you!"

"WE WILL NOT LEAVE!"

"NO TIME! JUST GO!" She stood fast and jumped the wall. She summoned a wall of bones stretching as far as she could. She stumbled a little and Wingdings knew that it wouldn't be long before she dusted.

He had to save her, he didn't save their mother, he wouldn't let his sister die in the same way. He ran forward, Tempus tried to grab him back but missed. He jumped the bone wall and ran into the battle desperate to save Kristen. He fought well, shooting out bone attacks and blasters as fast as he could until he heard a shout.

"WINGDINGS! WATCH OUT!" Kristen called out too late and he tuned straight into the human's attack. The blade stabbed him in the face right under his left eye cracking the bone down and into his mouth but not going right though the other side. He yelled out him pain and fell to his knees. He put his hand over the wound and one of his fingers went into the newly formed hole, that really freaked him out and he screamed again. And then yet again he screamed as another human came down on him. The sword hitting him in the right side of the top of his head cracking his skull from the top and into his eye socket. He fell further down laying on the muddy ground. He figured this was it, he would die.

He turned to Kristen just to catch her final moments as an arrow hit her in the spine and she dusted with a scream. Wingdings was losing conciseness but he saw Tempus fight towards him.

The next thing he knew he was being dragged across the battlefield towards the monster's strong hold on Mt Ebott.

"come on bro, you gotta help me out here. you're not as small as you used to be i can't carry someone the same height as me."

Tempus was talking, constantly telling him to wake up or to help him or to just walk or to just fucking wake up, telling him to not die.

Wingdings let out a small groan and tried to stand on his own two feet. "WE... WE'VE LOST?" He asked, he'd sighed weakly not totally sure his brother could see it. Wingdings couldn't see him after all, in fact he could see very little and couldn't see anything on his right...

"you're awake, good. we have to get back fast."

"WHAT HAPPENED? WHERE IS EVERYONE? WHERE ARE WE GOING BACK TO?"

"sorry, wingdings i understand you unless you sign."

But he was. Wasn't he? He looked at the magic hands he had been signing with, it was too pale to see unless he really concentrated on it. He figured trying to talk was pointless until he got more energy.

Wingdings limped with the support of his brother, his head hurt so much but he was becoming more aware of his surroundings. Hundreds of monsters were running away, he saw no skeletons among them. He didn't want to concentrate on the horrors around him. There were so many wounded, so much dust and blood and rotting human corpses. He closed his eyes and let Tempus lead the way.

That was until he was suddenly dropped into the mud. He turned and saw no other monster around him, he just saw a human with his blade amongst a cloud of dust. Tempus, his brother... just died... Just like that, so suddenly, too quickly, out of nowhere...

And he was alone in the darkness of the battlefield that was just getting darker as the sun set.

He didn't want to die, he was too young, too ambitious, too intelligent, to die. He was filled with adrenaline, mustering up all the strength he could he summoned a blaster and killed the human before they had a change to come at him. He stood on shacking legs and ran, his whole body was painful but he had to ignore it, what just happened was painful, he'd lost everything and he couldn't even mourn, not yet.

He saw someone in the distance; a commander, a bird monster, he called out, it didn't matter what he said they couldn't understand him. All that matter was that they heard him.

The commander caught him as he fell. "Medic!" They called but nobody came. "Hang in there, kid."

Wingdings felt himself being lifted again but as soon as he got to his feet he heard a human, "surrender now, demons!"

The commander let go of Wingdings carefully and put his wings up, Wingdings copied putting his hands up.

"Well look at what we have here, an officer and some kid." One human laughed.

"Kill the kid, take the officer, we'll execute them publicly."

"Don't," the commander spoke, "let him go, he's wounded and too weak to fight, he's no threat. I'll come quietly if you do."

"HA! You come quietly or you'll die now, it's not that important that we take you prisoner we just thought it'd make things more fun, give the civilians a little show. Show 'em what happens to filth like you demons!"

Wingdings glared at the humans. No way was he going down without a fight. He may be weakened but he'd still try, he was a boss monster for heaven's sake! "JUST TRY IT, HUMAN SCUM!" He snapped, forgetting to sign in his anger.

The humans look at him confused. "What?" The leader said.

"He's a skeleton," the monster commander said, "they speak in fonts, it seems he speaks in one that we can't understand. They call these kind of fonts speaking in hands."

"Hands huh?" The human laughed and looked to his left. "You there, boy mage, come here."

Gaster watched as a human child only about ten years old came over and his heart broke, he hated seeing children in battle, it wasn't right. "Yes sir?" The child said.

"I have the perfect target for you to practice your aim on."

The leader snapped his fingers and two men grabbed Wingdings and forced him to his knees.

"Don't!" The commander called. They couldn't help, they'd been tied up, Wingdings hadn't noticed. They had been on his right.

"Hold out his hands."

The humans pushed Wingdings forward, his face in the mud and they held his arms outstretched.

Wingdings looked up at the human child and he struggled to get up but he was too injured. He knew if that he was at full health he'd get out of this no problem but with the head trauma he had...

The human leader put his arm around the mage. "Apparently, this skeleton speaks in 'hands' so blow them off, be careful not to take his arms just his hands. This will be good practice for you."

The kid looked worried. Maybe he didn't want to do this...

"What if I hit the soldiers?"

Nope, that was too much for Wingdings to hope for.

"Good point," the human bend down, "stay put, don't you dare move or I'll kill your commander and then you and I'll make both painful. Do you understand, filth?"

Wingdings glared but nodded there was nothing to do now but give up. No matter what he did he'd die and he wouldn't take any humans with him. All he'd do by resisting was hurt his pride and receive a painful death so he lay limp, accepting his fate.

The humans let go and backed off. The child cast a spell and Wingdings saw a bright light and felt an intense pain in his hands, like there was a hole being burnt into them. When the light faded he saw what had become of his hands. They hadn't been blown off but he had a large hold in each hand. It burnt so bad and he had to fight back tears of pain. He may have given up but he'd never cry in front of a human.

"Aww," the child said, "I failed..."

The leader laughed. "Yes, but it was a good effort. I didn't expect you to do it, I thought you'd blow his arms off. You have potential, kid. Try again."

As the child raised his arm again, the commander rushed the kid knocking him over. It seemed they had gotten free of the human's grasp but their wings where still tied behind their back.

The human leader sighed and stabbed the captain in the back, the sword going in deep causing a bloodcurdling scream. They turned to dust. "Well looks like the fun's over. Time for you to die, skeleton."

The sword was raised ready to end Wingdings's life. He shut his eyes ready for death to come. He had so many regrets but it was all too late now.

The blow ever came. All Wingdings felt was warmth. He looked up slowly and saw a wall of fire and a very young fire elemental in simple, mismatched armour run over to him. He was quite a bit younger than Wingdings but he couldn't get a good view of him before he passed out again.

Grillby's unit had gotten the order to retreat last as they where further out in the front lines. Everyone was running as fast as they could but Grillby wasn't ready, he could still fight... he could still kill humans...

He was terrified really but he wanted to help monsters more than anything. He couldn't just sit around at home while his father and brothers fought for their lives. He was an elemental, he couldn't take physical damage the only threat to him on a battlefield were water and ice mages. He felt it was his duty to help more vulnerable monsters so he ran away from home and lied about his age to be let into the army. He was just fourteen but he didn't regret his decision, he wasn't hurt and had a lot of energy. He had saved a few monsters already. Of course he'd been saved a few times as well...

As much as he was still willing to fight he knew that he shouldn't disobey orders. He was already in trouble when they found out he wasn't even sixteen and in even more trouble when they figured out he enlisted when the age of enlistment had still been eighteen.

He ran away with his unit. He had been at the very front deep into the human ranks so he was one of the last to run, now at the back of the fleeing monsters and would probably be one of the last to get to safety. As he ran he heard humans following him, he felt arrows stab into his back, pricing his armour, it didn't hurt but it was an annoyance. Archers were a huge risk to other fleeing monsters so he turned around every so often and fired off as many fireballs as he could in a desperate attempt to hold the humans back. It was slowly working and he was beginning to lose them as he ran faster.

As he got closer to the mountain he couldn't help but notice that there were no monsters other than his own unit. He hoped that was because they had ran away and not...

Something caught his eye. A group of humans surrounded a young and badly hurt skeleton. They were going to kill him... Grillby couldn't let that happen, he was here to save people.

He had no time to think things through. He broke formation and ran to the skeleton. He heard his commander shout out to him, "Oi, solider! Get back here!"

"...He'll die if I don't go," Grillby yelled back.

"He's a dead man either way! It's not worth your life! That mage could easily kill you!"

He ignored the commander and continued on. He knew that the commander wouldn't help, no one would but he didn't care he had to help the skeleton. He just wanted to save people, he didn't want anyone to die.

He used all his strength to create a wall of fire around the skeleton and shot out fireballs at the humans. The fight didn't last too long, there was a few close calls as blades of water came close to him but he somehow got away with only scratches. He killed all the humans in the end with a powerful fire blast that left their bodies charred.

He ran over to the skeleton who looked up at him. His right eye was closed and he squinted with his left. Grillby noticed the broken glasses next to him, they weren't what was important though. The cracks looked painful and Grillby noticed the holes in his hands. The skeleton past out quickly and Grillby began to panic, afraid he'd fallen down and was about to dust.

He took a deep breath, he wasn't very good at healing magic, he was much better at just setting things on fire, but everyone had been taught simple healing magic in basic training. Grillby did what he could but he knew it wouldn't be enough, he had to get this guy up the mountain if he was to have any hope of survival.

Grillby had no idea how he'd do that though. The skeleton was very tall so that would make it difficult to carry him, but Grillby figured that since he was just bones he couldn't be too heavy.

After quickly pulling out the arrows in his back, he positioned the injured skeleton carefully and managed to get him onto his back. Since the skeleton was so tall, and Grillby still had some growing to do, he ended up with the skeleton's legs dragging behind him but he was rather light.

Grillby started to move out towards the mountain. He was really far behind the others and slower now that he had a passenger but he just had to make it up there.

He was beginning to climb the mountain when the skeleton began to regain some conciseness. He made a small moaning sound and then said something in a language Grillby couldn't understand.

"...What?"

The skeleton sighed and a pair of magical hand appeared before Grillby, they looked the same as the skeleton's, holes and all. They signed out something. "WHO ARE YOU?" The skeleton spoke at the same time.

Grillby knew sign language. He was a shy kid and used it sometimes when he didn't want to talk. He'd probably use it now but his hands where busy holding the skeleton in place.

"...I'm Grillby... I was retreating when I saw you... I had to help."

The skeleton was quite and Grillby wondered if he had fainted again but he suddenly spoke, and signed again. "THANK YOU FOR SAVING MY LIFE."

Grillby smiled. "...Don't mention it... I joined up to save lives... What's your name?"

"WINGDINGS GASTER... PLEASE, JUST CALL ME GASTER."

"...Nice to meet you, Gaster... Try not to die on me... Try to stay awake."

"EASIER SAID THAN DONE BUT I'LL DO MY BEST."

"...Tell me about yourself," Grillby said, "...talking may help you stay awake... Talk about whatever you want."

Gaster took Grillby up on that offer. They spoke to each other all the way up the mountain about all sorts. Gaster's plans to become a scientist, his ideas, his theories, Grillby didn't understand a lot of it and Gaster knew that but that didn't matter all that mattered was that it was keeping Gaster awake.

Grillby also told Gaster about himself, about how old he really was and why he had lied, he spoke of his dream to open a bar one day, one like his father used to own but had been destroyed in the war.

They spoke of the lives they used to have, their future plans. When they ran out of topics they spoke about what they saw, just pointing out random things in the forest. Random observations became nothing or started a conversion that went on for a while, some of it was rather stupid but that didn't matter to either of them. Had anyone heard them they would assume it had just been two friends messing around on a leisurely walk not two strangers retreating from a battlefield.

Of course the two of them were getting along rather well.

They got to the top of the mountain and saw powerful looking guards standing at the entrance to a cave. They'd made it.

Grillby made sure he had a good hold of Gaster before he took off running towards the cave.

"...Help!" He called out.

A guard ran over to them and carefully took Gaster off of Grillby's back. Gaster hissed out in pain and lent on both the guard and Grillby as he tired to walk the rest of the way.

"He's badly hurt," the guard told the others. "We need a medic here now."

One of the other guards nodded and ran off. As another approached with a clipboard.

"I'll need your names and squad numbers. We need to keep a good record of survivors in order to inform the families."

Gaster nodded, and spoke weakly he really wanted to sleep, he was so tired but he held on. "WINGDINGS GASTER FROM SQUAD 176." He looked over at Grillby who was looking nervous, he'd probably be found out now, Gaster didn't want him to get into trouble for lying about his age. "HE SAVED MY LIFE," he added. Pointing to the fire elemental.

The guard flipped through the papers on the clipboard and wrote something down.

The guard who had ran off returned with four doctors carrying a stretcher, they helped Gaster onto it and ran off, He needed medical attention now.

"And you?" Asked clipboard guard.

"...Grillby... from squad 184."

He flipped throw his papers again. "The rest of your squad just came in."

"...I know... I disobeyed orders to save Gaster."

"A friend of yours?" The guard asked.

"...No... I just couldn't leave a monster in danger."

"That's very brave of you then."

Grillby stayed quiet. He was worried about Gaster but he was also worried about himself. When he first signed up he'd taken steps to make himself look older and they had been so desperate for troops they hadn't really checked his age or asked for ID but now... He really looked his real age and these guys were probably going to ask...

"Um... It says here you're eighteen?"

Shit... "...Yep, it does."

"You don't look eighteen, sixteen maybe but that's still a push... Did you lie on your form?"

Grillby sunk down into himself, no point in lying now it'd just get him in more trouble. "...I did."

"Please tell me you are at least sixteen."

"...Fourteen..."


	2. The Last Skeleton

Grillby sat on a chair inside the cave, looking down at the floor, a guard was to his side, a doctor had just finished checking him over and was packing up. He knew he was in trouble but he didn't know what was going to happen to him. He took comfort knowing that he couldn't possibly have been the only one to lie about their age and he had saved a life...

He had been told to wait until they had discussed it. He had no idea what they were talking about but they looked sad, really sad. Grillby just wanted to see his family, he just wanted to know if they were alive.

One of the guards approached him and knelt down. "Alright, kid, come with us."

"...Am I in trouble?" He asked, quietly. Everything was suddenly becoming all too real for Grillby, his adrenaline was gone and he now had time to think about what had happened out there. He realised how many times he had almost died, he thought about all the horrors he'd seen and he thought about how worried his family must be... He was traumatised.

"We'll see," was all he was told and the guard offered Grillby his hand. He took it, stood up and followed close behind the guard and though the cave. He didn't know where they were going, he didn't care. His legs were shaking and all he saw and heard were memories of the battles; the blood and the dust, the screams and the silence...

He was taken into a big building and through the corridor to double doors. There was the sound of people talking on the other side. The guard knocked on the door and someone opened it. The conversation didn't stop for them. Grillby didn't really pay much attention to it but it sounded like they were talking about how much supplies were left.

He looked up from the spot on the ground he'd been staring at and saw the guard whispering to some well dressed monster. He looked away when the guard pointed at him and the other looked over at him.

He looked straight ahead of himself and was shocked to see the King and Queen, in full grand armour and sitting on thrones at the head of a huge table listening to the monsters who were talking. Why had they brought him to the King and Queen?

The guard and well dressed monster waited for conversation to finish before they began to push forward taking Grillby with them.

"Well then, we should move onto the survivor reports next?" Queen Toriel said.

"Yes," someone stood, he spoke clearly but there was sadness in his voice, "we don't think anymore monsters will come now..." He stopped and let out a sad sigh, tears threatening to spill. "I regret to inform you that many monster races seem to be extinct or only have about twenty or so left," he said while trying to remain professional and not let his emotions get the better of him.

Queen Toriel gasped putting her hands over her mouth.

King Asgore put his head in his hands. "There was no such need for so much death..." He sounded so defeated.

"Pardon me, Your Majesty," the guard called out, "sorry for the interruption but two more survivors have come in, I have one with me now and we have something I think you must know."

Grillby was confused. Had this been explained to him and he hadn't listened? Or had they just felt it was not important to tell him?

"What is it?" King Asgore asked.

"This young fire elemental came in with a skeleton on his back. The skeleton is badly wounded with injuries to his head and hands. He is in care now but well..." The guard hesitated.

"Yes?" Queen Toriel urged gently.

"No other skeletons have come back, that injured one, Wingdings Gaster, he's the last skeleton."

The room went quiet. Grillby felt so, so bad for Gaster, he was the last of his kind and he didn't know...

"Is he in critical condition? Does he know?" The Queen asked suddenly, a look of such sadness on her face, it broke Grillby's heart.

"The doctors took him away for treatment, they haven't gotten back to us yet but it does look pretty bad. He has no idea about the fate of his people."

The King and Queen lent over to whisper to each other before turning back. "Keep us informed of his state. When he is able we will bring him the news personally. He deserves that much." King Asgore said.

"Yes, my King," the guard bowed deeply.

"What about this child?" Queen Toriel asked.

"Grillby here saved Gaster's life. He's a hero, but he lied. He told the recruiters he was eighteen, he's fourteen."

The King and Queen looked at each other and Grillby took a deep breath. "...I'm sorry... I just wanted to... help people..."

"It's alright, my child," the Queen said sweetly, "why don't you tell us about what happened?"

Grillby told them everything, it was so hard to speak about. Grillby wasn't sure when he started crying but he did and he sobbed out his story to the royal couple. He hoped he'd never have to think about the war again, he just couldn't stop seeing the battlefield.

He finished explaining everything, including how he saved Gaster and brought him back and about how he worried for the stranger he saved. He told them about how he just wanted to see his family again.

When he was done the Queen got out of her seat and walked toward Grillby and hugged him close to her. Grillby was shocked by the sudden embrace but cooled his flames so he wouldn't accidentally burn the Queen and hugged her back. The act just made him cry more.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, "no child should have to go through any of that. You were so brave for what you did."

"...Am I going to be punished?" He asked, he didn't care if he was so long as his family and Gaster were safe.

Queen Toriel let the flame go and looked him in the eyes, "of course not, my child. It was wrong of you to run away from home and lie but you did so much good. We will not punish you, your parents on the other hand, might..."

Grillby knew they would, his parents had always been strict with him and his brothers but he knew that they loved him and would be happy to see him alive and well.

King Asgore walked over and put a hand on Grillby's shoulder. "Don't worry we'll find your family as fast as we can and we'll make sure you're updated on Gaster's condition. I'm sure he'll be happy to see the monster who saved his life again."

Grillby nodded and bowed to the King and Queen. "Thank you so much, Your Majesty."

"No need to thank us, you are a war hero. I'm sure your parents will be very proud of you once they stop being mad at you," Asgore smiled at him and turned to the guard again. "Help him find his family and see to it that they have a good place to rest."

"Yes, Your Majesty," the guard bowed again and walked off with Grillby following behind him.

* * *

It took a while to find Grillby's family. There were so many monsters trying to find loved ones, that most of the notice boards detailing survivors were so crowded, that the guards and volunteers were having a hard time trying to organise people. Grillby ended up resting in an office while the guards went looking. He was so tired and it didn't help that he had been given comfortable clothes to change into. His uncomfortable and stiff armour sat at the side. Grillby was sitting at a desk wrapped in a blanket, falling asleep only to be awakened by nightmares, and then he'd fall asleep again only to repeat the processes.

He was so cold, he'd never been cold before, he was make of fire after all, but he was so cold and numb. He felt like he lost himself. He wondered if he'd be the same again...

Eventually the guard came back with information on his family. His eldest brother had been killed. His father was in critical condition fading in and out of consciousness, slowly but surely falling down. His other two brothers and his mother were safe and together. According to the volunteers who were helping to reunite families, they seemed to be under the impression that Grillby had been killed to, since he was so young, and therefore probably easier to kill. Plus all their friends had found out what happened to their loved ones hours ago and they'd heard nothing of Grillby's fate.

Grillby only nodded in response and quietly followed the guard once again, this time to the rather quickly put together, small hut his family were staying in. Once they got there the guard knocked on the door. Grillby stood quietly behind the guard, hidden from view. He was lost in a daze.

His second oldest... now oldest brother, Blaze, opened the door. He looked exhausted and it looked like he'd been crying a lot too. "Yes?" he asked, voice hoarse. "Do you have anymore news about Father?"

"I'm afraid not but," the guard stepped to the side to show Grillby standing with his head down, still lost in his daze. There was a silence before the shock left.

"Oh my god, Grillby!" Blaze shouted fairly loudly as he rushed forward and pulled Grillby into a huge hug. "We thought you had died!"

Grillby let out another sob, "...I'm so, so sorry..." He chocked out.

"Your brother was very brave," the guard said, "he came in with a wounded man on his back, he risked his life to save people. The King called him a hero."

"Brother... You didn't need to-"

"...Yes I did!" Grillby interrupted, "... I couldn't just wait around... while people were dying..."

Blaze sighed, "you're too young to be taking such risks, Grillby..."

"Did you just say Grillby?" His other brother, Pyre, suddenly called out running over to them. He gasped when he saw Grillby standing there and pulled him into a tight hug. "Oh Grillby, you're alive... I can't believe it..."

Grillby let out a dry laugh and repeated his apologises as he hugged his brother.

When they finally broke apart, they thanked the guard and brought Grillby inside. Grillby sat down on a chair, Blaze sitting with him while Pyre went to get their mother. The walls were thin so Grillby heard the conversation.

"Who was at the door?" His mother asked. "Was there news about your father?"

"No news yet, it was a Royal Guard... Mother, Grillby's back."

There was a gasp and the sound of feet hitting the floor hard and fast as his mother ran out of the room and over to Grillby.

She looked at him with molten tears in her eyes and an angry look on her face, Grillby looked back at her not knowing what he should do or say... Then she slapped him hard in the face. His glasses went flying off his face with the force of the slap. "You stupid boy!" She yelled at him, "you... you could've..." she began to sob, "you didn't... have to... I thought I'd lost you too..."

Grillby stood, he left his glasses where they had landed and hugged his mother. She was shaking but hugged him back tightly. "...I'm so sorry... I... I shouldn't have left you..."

"You didn't think, Grillby... What if you died? Do you know how I'd feel if you did? You should've never been on the battlefield, you're a child..."

"...I'm sorry, Mother..."

The hut was quiet, Grillby's two brothers came in close and embraced him as well and the four of them cried together.

Once they all calmed down, they sat down. The silence was awkward and eventually the eldest brother spoke, "so... that guard said you saved a life and that the King called you a hero. I need to heard that story!"

His mother looked disapprovingly at him but she didn't stop Grillby from telling them what had happened only hours before.

* * *

Gaster had passed out again the second he lay down, he'd been so tired and was really weakened. Besides he was much more relaxed now, he was safe and getting medical attention, he could relax and let the doctors do their job.

In his dreams there was nothing but pain. All he saw was his family die again and again and again... It hurt that he couldn't save them. Seeing his nieces and nephews die hurt the most, they were just kids, the oldest was eight, the youngest was two... Why did the humans have to kill children? They couldn't even fight... It was cruel, evil... They were just kids. Innocent children.

Gaster awoke suddenly and opened his eyes to see a wooden ceiling... It took him a second to remember what had happened, his mind was so fuzzy. The first thing that came to his mind was his savoir, Grillby, had he gotten into trouble...? Then another thought came into his mind as he awoke more; his whole family had died... He felt so alone, he tried to hold back the sobs but didn't have much luck. He wanted so badly to see another skeleton, preferably someone he knew, even a bully... He didn't want to be alone...

He sat up slowly, and took a deep breath trying to clam down. Gaster wiped his eye and took another deep breath. He tried to look around but without his glasses the world was blurry but he ignored that. He noticed that he couldn't see at all from his right eye. He reacted up to his face and felt a bandage over his eye and skull... Well that explained that, he hoped.

He looked over to the other side of the room and squinted. He was happily surprised to see Grillby sitting in a chair, laying over a desk, an open text book and notebook under him, it looked like he had been studying. He was asleep with a blanket over him and his glasses falling off his face.

Gaster let out a small laugh and looked over to the bedside table where he found a new pair of glasses sitting there. His had gotten broken and left on the battlefield but he guessed they had his medical records from when he joined the army. He reached out and put them on before he slowly and carefully turned and stood up.

His legs were weak but he wasn't about to just lay in bed and be useless, he hated doing nothing. He took a about five small steps forward before his legs gave out and he fell to the floor with a clatter. The noise was enough to wake Grillby, who sat up quickly, a few sparks flying in surprise.

He saw Gaster on the floor, fixed his glasses quickly and ran to his side, offering a hand. Gaster took it and Grillby helped him up and back onto the bed.

"_Good to see you're finally awake but you really shouldn't be walking around yet._" Grillby signed and didn't talk.

"I'M FINE" Gaster replied and then asked, confused, "WHY AREN'T YOU TALKING?"

"_I can't," _was the reply, "_I can't bring myself to... It just sort of happened slowly... The therapists say it's the trauma... Luckily I know sign language."_

Gaster felt really bad for the kid, he was only four years younger than Gaster himself but right now all he saw was a little kid who'd seen too much. "I SEE... I'M SORRY. IS YOUR FAMILY SAFE?"

"_I lost my oldest brother, my Father was in critical condition when I arrived. I did get to speak to him one last time before he... well... He was happy to see that I was alive, although mad that I had risked my life... He still told me he was proud of me though."_

"I'M SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS."

"_It's okay, Gaster, you said you lost your whole family, that's worse. I still have two brothers and my Mother."_

Gaster sighed, he didn't want to think about his family. He didn't even know what he was going to do, his life was changed forever and he wanted all humans dead for what they had done. "HOW LONG WAS I OUT FOR?" He changed the subject as fast as he could, he wanted to talk about anything other than his loss.

"_Almost three weeks, we thought we might've lost you a few times, everyone's going to be so happy you're awake! A lot has happened when you were out."_

"LIKE?"

Grillby looked away, he seemed to hesitate about whether or not to tell him but he did. "_We lost the war, thousands of monsters died. The humans... They've sealed us all inside the mountain with a magical barrier. We can't break out."_

Gaster took a moment to process all that... They lost... They were trapped underground... Trapped, he'd never see the surface again. Trapped and at the mercy of humans. Human murderers, who killed children... He couldn't think and his head hurt so much. He groaned out in pain and grabbed his skull with his bandaged hands. He was hyperventilating, so many thoughts going through his head... _WE'RE TRAPPED... TRAPPED... IT HURTS! MAKE IT STOP HURTING!_ Gaster gripped his head harder, his nails digging into the bone of his skull as he panicked.

"_I'm going to get a doctor," _Grillby signed and ran off out of the room leaving Gaster sitting in the bed with his pounding head. Thoughts all over the place... He'd never see his home again, he'd never have revenge, he'd never see the stars or the sun, or feel the rain, or hear birds sing... He wanted his family, it was all too much and it felt like he might shut down, like he might fall down. At that thought his hyperventilating stopped and he was left feeling numb, he could die and he wouldn't care...

Gaster sat there motionless until he heard the door open and Grillby returned with a doctor.

The doctor looked at him, eyes going up and down, it felt like she was judging him. "Good to see you're awake, how do you feel?"

"MY HEAD HURTS. WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME?" Gaster asked quickly just wanting to find out and then be left alone to die.

The doctor sighed and pulled a chair over before sitting down. Grillby came closer as well and stood next to the doctor.

The doctor looked down at her notes before looking back at Gaster. "You came in seriously injured. You had hairline cracks all over your left ankle that was the least serious wound, it should be healed by now." Gaster didn't even remember getting that or any pain there... Well he had been limping... "We tried to heal the holes in your hands but, we couldn't, I've never seen an injury like that before which doesn't help. They may hurt sometimes and I would imagine it'll be really hard to get used to but you will. It's your head injuries that were the worst."

"HOW BAD IS IT?" Gaster was so scared. He wanted to die but at the same time he didn't and he didn't want is mind to be affected by his wounds. He really couldn't live if his brain was damaged in any way, he cared more about that than anything.

"Well, you'll have two permanent cracks on your skull. It was quiet hard to tell if there is any brain damage without the necessary equipment... or power, but you're up and speaking normally so I doubt there will be too many negative affects. We'll have to keep you in for a while so we can keep an eye on you for any changes, however. Although I don't think it affected the magic that makes up your brain, it's better safe than sorry."

Gaster let out a sigh of relief, he didn't care if he was scarred and deformed all that mattered to him was his intelligence. "THAT'S GOOD."

"There is something else however," the doctor went on, "we were really worried about the crack on the right side of your face. We didn't know how far the blade went into your eye and Grillby hadn't seen it happen so he couldn't tell us. We didn't know how bad it was until we got you into surgery and well... The magic that made up your right eye was totally destroyed and useless, we had to remove it to avoid infection, so you're now half blind. Of course if you're worried about you're appearance you could always get a glass eye..."

Gaster didn't like the sound of that. Half blind... could he still be a great scientist if he was half blind? Would it effect his observations if he couldn't see everything? His depth perception would be all off, that could cause so many accidents. Everything was hopeless now...

No, he still had to try, he couldn't give up. He had to make his family proud, he had to prove they didn't die for nothing. He couldn't fall down, they wouldn't want him to.

He cooperated with the doctor as she checked him over and changed his bandages. He ended up talking to Grillby when he didn't need to talk to the doctor, she didn't seem like a very friendly monster, she didn't give him any of the news gently, but it must be stressful dealing with so many wounded... He just wanted to keep his mind off of his current pathetic state by talking to someone and he liked Grillby.

"APART FROM THE BARRIER HAS EVERYTHING BEEN OKAY?" Gaster asked him.

"_Yeah, all things considered, it's a okay as it can be. Everyone's really depressed and many fell down, those who are left are traumatised. The King and Queen are doing everything they can to keep the people's hopes up but... It's hard, ya know. They had an award ceremony last week, they handed out medals of honour to monsters who had shown great bravery or saved a lot of lives. That raised people's sprites a bit."_

Gaster grinned, "SO, DID YOU GET ONE?" He asked, Gaster knew that Grillby definitely deserved it but he had told them he was eighteen so that might have been enough to deny him a reward.

Grillby nodded. "_I did! For saving you, __and a few others__. It came with some money too, it's really helped my family get back on their feet."_

Gaster smiled, "THAT'S WONDERFUL!"

The two spoke for a while longer after the doctor left until there was a knock at the door.

Grillby got up to open the door and the two friends saw that it was the King and Queen. Grillby bowed to them but the King quickly stopped him and Grillby stood upright again and began to sign to them. Gaster couldn't see what he was saying as Grillby had his back to him and the King and Queen were talking too quietly for Gaster to hear.

Grillby turned back to Gaster and signed to him, "_I'm going to leave you guys alone. I should really be getting home anyway before Mother starts to worry."_

Gaster just nodded and Grillby left the room after grabbing his things, and the King and Queen entered. Gaster had no idea why they were here surely they had better things to be doing...

King Asgore walked over and held out his hand, "It's nice to meet you, Mr Gaster," he said.

Gaster shook the King's hand in a loose grip, the King was big but he was gentle with him. "PLEASE YOUR HIGHNESS, JUST GASTER IS FINE."

"Oh, alright."

Queen Toriel stood next to her husband and smiled kindly at Gaster, there was something about her that reminded him of his mother but he quickly got rid of the thought. "Are you feeling any better now?" She asked him.

"YES I AM, THE DRUGS THE DOCTOR GAVE ME HAVE REALLY HELPED MY HEADACHE."

"That's good news. Grillby has told us about what happened. You must be very strong to have survived all of that. It's good to have you back and recovering," The Queen said still smiling at him.

"UM, NOT TO BE RUDE, BUT WHAT ARE THE KING AND QUEEN DOING HERE?" Gaster asked. He knew that the Dreemurrs were kind and gentle monsters and them visiting the wounded wasn't all that weird but Gaster noticed the lack of guards, he also had a bad feel about this for some reason.

"Ah, yes..." King Asgore said slowly, "I'm afraid there is no easy way to tell you the news we're here to tell you so we might as well just say it..."

He didn't say it.

Queen Toriel sighed and put a hand on Gaster's shoulder, "I'm so very sorry to be the one to tell you this, we felt that it was our responsibility to tell you that... well..." They both seemed to be struggling to find the words.

That just made Gaster more afraid of what were they going to say. "WHAT IS IT?"

"I'm so sorry..." There were tears in the King's eyes.

The Queen took a deep breath and spoke quietly her voice full of sadness. "No other skeletons made it back," she said.

Gaster looked at her, his one eye wide. "THAT... THAT CAN'T BE... THERE HAS TO BE... THERE HAS TO BE SOME MORE THAT MADE IT BACK! THERE HAS TO BE..."

"I'm so sorry, my child, but you are the last skeleton," The Queen looked away as she said it.

Gaster felt the tears fall... He was the last, he didn't want to believe it, there had to be more somewhere, there had to be... but there wasn't.

"I can't imagine what it feels like to suffer such a loss but my wife and I will be here for you, anything you need don't hesitate to ask," King Asgore offered.

Gaster broke down in tears. He was already feeling lost and hurt and now that he was the last of his kind, the pain he felt was unreal and impossible to describe. And with the pain came rage; the humans... They killed every last one of his people, he'd never see another skeleton again, not even one of his bullies.

He swore then and there as the King and Queen embraced him as he cried, that he would become the best scientist in the world and he'd find a way to break the barrier and then... Then he'd kill all humans. Every last one, he'd make them feel his pain even if he died trying.


	3. New Royal Scientist

Several years past, people got used to living underground and they eventually began to move further into the mountain, letting the old settlement slowly begin to fall into ruins.

Gaster wasn't sure how it ended up happening but he had become friends with the King and Queen. They had just kept coming to visit him while he recovered and before he knew it he was talking to them casually and visiting regularly with Grillby once he was back on his feet.

Asgore and Toriel had helped Gaster out with money and he easily got into university once it had opened not long after the barrier was put up. Gaster ended up top of his class. He'd study all day, working on projects for school and his plans for when he became a scientist, he'd already began thinking of ideas and theories to power the Underground. He didn't have a job, he didn't need one, not with the King and Queen paying his rent and food bill.

The course he was on would take seven years to complete, he'd be twenty five by the time he was finished. Gaster didn't mind waiting that long after all he'd always thought he'd be in his late twenties or even his thirties by the time he became a scientist. Since back when they lived on the surface it would've taken longer as Gaster didn't have the funds to go to school.

He didn't really make friends at school, he was too busy working to socialise with his classmates but everyone knew he was the smartest and some approached him for help studying. At first Gaster told them to go away and then he realised that maybe explaining things to someone in simpler terms may also help him understand better as well and he'd do anything to get even better than he already was.

Four years into the course Grillby moved in with him. Grillby was feeling smothered at home, since he had ran away and joined the army his family ended up being rather overprotective of him and he felt like he couldn't live his life with his mother or one of his brothers following him around to "make sure he doesn't do something stupid."

It had taken some convincing for his family to let him move out. Grillby arguing that he was eighteen now and could make his own decisions hadn't helped the fight, after all at fourteen he'd joined the army, his family were worried about what he would do now that he was an actual adult. He had originally wanted to live alone but his family was having none of that. Gaster managed to convince them that he'd keep an eye on him if they let him move in. They had eventually given in, with the condition that if he was going to do this Grillby had to get a job and pay half the rent and other bills, he couldn't "just mooch off the King and Queen."

Grillby was more than happy with this arrangement. He got to move in with his friend and he could work full time and save up money to open the bar he always wanted a little bit faster if he only had to pay half. So he got a job as a waiter at a fancy restaurant and moved in as soon as he got his first paycheck.

Gaster, to was happy with the arrangement. He wasn't too sure about having a roommate at first because it could cause distractions from his work but Grillby was the perfect roommate, he was quiet and he kept Gaster from self distrusting from his workload, reminding him to take breaks every now and then. Gaster would finish off the part he was at when Grillby told him to take a break and they'd talk for a while or play chess or go for a walk. Gaster also sometimes forgot he needed to eat, even Grillby coming in to remind him that it was dinner time didn't seem to be enough so Grillby started cooking and bringing food to Gaster's room, once the food was placed in front of him Gaster would find himself eating without really noticing himself doing it. Grillby liked the cooking practice Gaster gave him and didn't mind making all the meals and washing up.

Grillby's family still didn't let him have total independence, however. They constantly came over and nagged him, over time they began to also get close with Gaster as well. Grillby's mother had a lot to say about Gaster trying to skip meals, forgetting to wash and pulling several all nighters in a row, she began to come over on days Grillby was working and Gaster was home and cook meals for him, sometimes Toriel would join her. The two woman mothering both of them and constantly fussing over them.

As much as he and Grillby complained about it all, it was nice for so many people to care about them. Gaster felt like he had a family again, although it was not the same as having other skeletons around. He still found the loss of his people hard to accept, although he couldn't just tell himself a lie like there was some skeletons hiding somewhere in the Underground as it was such a small place and there was no reason why anyone would want to hide. Gaster also supposed that any survivors that hadn't made it to the mountain were probably hunted down and killed, so there would be no monsters on the surface anymore.

Gaster didn't like thinking about the past or his family and did everything he could to keep his mind off of it. If he thought about what he lost even for a second, he'd cry, then he'd lose all motivation for a long time, so he buried himself in his studies. He couldn't save his family, sometimes he felt he could have... But he was going to help monster-kind and before he knew it he was graduating at the top of his class. His final project had been basic plans for what he called "The Core" it would power the Underground and he had plans to really build it, after he graduated he planned to show it to the King and hopefully receive the necessary funding and workers.

He put that to the back of his mind as he put the blueprints away into his bag. He'd go to Asgore and Toriel the day after graduation, after all his classmates would probably drag him out for drinks afterwords. Not like he disliked going out every now and then but it was the day before graduation and Grillby had insisted on celebrating tonight, after all Grillby had just turned twenty one not that long ago so they had to celebrate that as well.

Gaster found the idea of going out with his friend for drinks the day before, hard to say no to, after all he had, had little time to relax during finals and he felt he deserved a few drinks. He just wouldn't get too drunk.

Or at least that had been the plan before they left. Gaster found himself passed out, face down on the sofa in their apartment with no memory of how he'd gotten there. His head hurt but he still got up and looked around... He saw his shoes and jacket dumped on the floor and his glasses had been dumped on the coffee table, at least he managed to get them off before he passed out. But he was still fully dressed in his skinny jeans and button up shirt... he didn't even take off his belt and watch.

He sighed and stood up, as much as he wanted to just sleep off his hangover, he had to get ready for the ceremony this afternoon. He supposed he better make sure Grillby was alright, he didn't remember getting home so he had no idea if he was with him or not and if he was missing, well... he would have three very angry fire elementals to deal with.

He went over to Grillby's room and knocked on the door lightly, not wanting to be too loud just in case Grillby's hangover was just as bad as his. There was no response so he just opened the door slightly and peeked inside, he just wanted to see if Grillby was there or not, if he was sleeping he'd leave him be.

But Grillby wasn't there. That made Gaster panic a little, what if something happened to his friend? He closed his eyes and tried to remember what happened the night before. They'd gone to a few bars, starting out slow... Then... Then they'd met a group of girls in one bar who seemed very interested in the two friends. Gaster remembered their flirting and their urging for them to drink more as they bought them shots... They'd done it to look cool... The last thing Gaster remembered was going out for a cigarette and being joined by one of the girls and talking his way out of going home with her.

Gaster groaned at himself. At least it was a fun night. He didn't know what had happened to Grillby though and he was worried his drunken friend had gotten taken advantage of by one of the girls.

"I'D BETTER GO LOOKING FOR HIM..." Gaster muttered to himself. He went back to the living room and began to put on his shoes when he heard a groan coming form the front door.

Gaster left his shoes and went over to the front door only to see Grillby passed out, on his back, still fully dressed, jacket and shoes still on... And the key in the lock. Gaster let out a sigh of relief that his friend was indeed home and safe, although passing out at the front door wasn't really good. Gaster found himself wondering if Grillby had managed to lock the door before he passed out.

He saw that his friend was beginning to come to so he lent against the wall, arms folded and legs crossed as he watched Grillby slowly open his eyes and fix his glasses.

"HEY," Gaster spoke, trying not to laugh at his friend's current messy state. His 'hair' was all over the place and it looked like he had spilt a bright blue drink over his shirt, he didn't seem hurt by it so it was probably alcohol. He was lucky his clothes were fire-proof.

Grillby only groaned again as he sat up. "_Morning,"_ he signed.

Gaster looked at his watch, "IT'S NOON."

"_Oh, we have to get ready then... What even happened last night?"_

"I'M NOT TOTALLY SURE, ALL I REMEMBER WAS GETTING DRUNK WITH SOME GIRLS AND THEN ESCAPING."

_"Oh, yeah... All I remember is you carrying me back after I puked on the side of the road... And almost on you... Sorry about that..."_

"NO NEED, I DIDN'T EVEN REMEMBER THAT."

They laughed and Grillby pulled himself off the floor. _"We sound probably try to control ourselves better next time..." _Grillby checked the door and breathed out a sigh of relief that it was indeed locked.

"YEAH, YOU'D THINK A FUTURE BARTENDER WOULD HAVE MORE CONTROL THAN THAT." Gaster joked.

"_Yeah, yeah... As long as Mother doesn't find out how drunk we were it shouldn't be a problem."_

"I'M CERTAIN THAT SHE WOULD KILL US," Gaster laughed and Grillby laughed with him.

Grillby, then took a careful step forward and stumbled a little, "_I feel awful, I'm never drinking again."_

Gaster laughed lightly at his friend as the two made their way to the kitchen and Grillby heated up some coffee with his magic while Gaster looked out medicine for their hangovers. They had to get ready quickly if they didn't want to be late for Gaster's big day.

* * *

Gaster sighed as he looked in the mirror, he didn't really look his best, in fact he looked exhausted and hungover, he looked how he felt really. This wasn't really the look he wanted to go for, at all. He wanted to look the part of a high class scientist (even though that would've still been hard with his scars,) not a drunken student but he didn't seem to mind as much as he thought he would. Times like that made him feel normal, he was a normal young person, partying with his friend and soon he'd have less chances to be normal, soon he'd be too busy trying to break the barrier and planning his revenge.

Grillby looked just as bad as Gaster did but it wasn't like Grillby was going up on stage to make a speech like Gaster was. He was just coming to watch and support his friend.

They arrived a little late to the university, but there was still a queue to get the family and friends seated so Grillby didn't have to rush, Gaster did. He had to get his robe and get in line with his class, he felt relived that he was going to be last since he was top of the class he had to make a speech at the end, so he was put last so he wouldn't have to get back on stage after.

He somehow managed to make it with five minutes to spare but he was out of breath and panting as he joined he back of the line. His classmates seemed to find this and the fact his was clearly hungover to be funny. After all he was the well dressed, proper spoken, genius that the class had looked up to, now he seemed much more like everyone else.

"Oh, man, what happened to you? You look like shit!" Asked one of his classmates.

"MY FRIEND DRAGGED ME OUT LAST NIGHT, BAD DECISIONS WERE MADE." Was all Gaster was going to give them.

"You're still coming out with us tonight though?"

"You will, won't you?"

"Please?"

Gaster laughed lightly at his classmates no matter how long it'd been he still couldn't get used to his peers actually being nice to him after all the bullying but he pushed that thought of home to the back of his mind. "OF COURSE I WILL. I, THE GREAT GASTER WOULD NEVER GO BACK ON MY PROMISE. I WILL NOT DRINK EXCESSIVELY HOWEVER." He said putting his hands on his hips as he turned his head to the side. His classmates seemed happy.

* * *

"And the finally, with the highest sore of 100%, Wingdings Gaster," the announcer called as Gaster proudly walked up on stage.

Gaster shook hands with the teachers and officials that where on stage and received his diploma with pride, he may have been a hungover mess but he was happier than he'd been in a long time.

He walked to the front of the stage ready to make his speech as he looked out into the crowd, he wasn't nervous in the slightest, he was full of confidence and that confidence was only boasted when he spotted Grillby in the crowd looking proud.

He smiled out to the crowd and spoke and signed clearly, "IT IS WITH GREAT PRIDE THAT I ACCEPT THIS DIPLOMA TODAY. I HAVE WORKED TIRELESSLY TO MAKE MY DREAMS A REALITY, I ONLY WISH MY FAMILY WAS HERE TO SEE ME NOW... I WILL MAKE THEM PROUD AND I WILL USE MY KNOWLEDGE TO HELP AS MANY PEOPLE AS I CAN, I SWEAR IT. OF COURSE I WOULD NOT BE HERE NOW IF IT WASN'T FOR GRILLBY AND THE KING AND QUEEN SO THEY HAS MY MOST HEARTFELT THANKS AS DOES EVERYONE WHO HAS HELPED ME IN THE PAST SEVEN YEARS. I WILL NOT LET ANYONE'S SACRIFICES BE IN VAIN. I'LL FIND A WAY TO OPEN THE BARRIER, I WILL IMPROVE THE LIVES OF MONSTERS EVERYWHERE, THIS IS MY PROMISE TO MONSTER KIND." The crowd cheered once Gaster was done, this was the best day of his life.

Now that his speech was over he turned to leave the stage so the ceremony could finish off with the speeches of the officials but he saw one of them gesture for him to stay put. Confused, Gaster remained, only steeping slightly to the side so the announcer could stand centre stage.

He really had to shout to be heard as there was still no power in the underground, a problem that Gaster hoped to fix. Standing so close to the announcer as he shouted made Gaster want to move away; he was really loud but he was frozen in place by what he said.

"And now King Asgore and Queen Toriel have a couple of announcements to make!"

Gaster was not told about this and he didn't know why he had to stay on stage for this. He figured if he was on time they would've had time to explain it to him. He simply watched as the King and Queen; his friends, walked onto the stage.

"We want to congratulate everyone who is graduating today," Queen Toriel said with a smile, "and that includes our good friend Gaster."

"He truly is a genius," King Asgore added putting an arm around Gaster who stood awkwardly at the King's side. "We are truly impressed with his work and his plans for The Core that the professors have shown us. We believe he will be a great help to the people. This is why we have decided to appoint him as our Royal Scientist!"

Gaster turned to Asgore, totally shocked, he hadn't expected to be given such a high position so early in his career. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?" Gaster asked.

"Of course, we are," Toriel walked to his other side and put her arm around him as well. "You'll receive all the funding and workers you need to build The Core and for any other projects, you'll also have a high pay and of course a large bonus as well."

Gaster couldn't believe that this was really happening right now but he was happy, very happy. He pulled away from the King and Queen and turned to face them. He knelt in font of them, bowing down low. "I ACCEPT, AND I SWEAR I WILL DO EVERYTHING I CAN TO HELP ALL MONSTERS."

Asgore stepped forward and lent down so he could place his hand on Gaster's shoulder. "No need for you to bow, my friend."

Gaster stood up straight again and smiled at his King, he really didn't know what to say but then seemingly out of nowhere a thought came to mind. "YOU SAID SOMETHING ABOUT A LARGE BONUS?"

"Oh yes, as the new Royal Scientist you'll get a bonus pay of 500,000 G," Asgore said as if it was to be expected.

Gaster had no need of that amount of money; the position already had a large pay and he most certainly wouldn't be home very much or have much of a chance to use that kind of money but he knew someone who _could_ use that money.

He turned to face the audience again and looked straight at Grillby who was smiling proudly at his friend. "I HAVE NO NEED OF ALL THAT MONEY SO WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE TO GIFT IT TO A FRIEND?" He asked.

Asgore and Toriel looked at each other, "yes, I don't see why not," Toriel said with a shrug.

"GRILLBY WANTS TO OPEN A BAR BUT HE NEEDS MONEY TO DO THAT, AS THANKS FOR SAVING MY LIFE IN THE WAR I WANT TO GIVE IT TO HIM."

"What a wonderful idea!" Asgore exclaimed. "Grillby, my friend, why don't you come up here?"

Grillby hesitated, he didn't know if he should really accept so much money, it didn't seem right but it was taking him a really long time to save up the money himself...

He stood up after the people around him encouraged him to do so and walked up onto the stage with his friends. "_Gaster, I don't know if I can really accept that..." _Grillby signed.

"OF COURSE YOU CAN, THINK OF IT AS A THANK YOU, IF IT WASN'T FOR YOU I WOULD'VE DIED, YOU DESERVE IT."

Grillby couldn't argue, not in front of so many people so he smiled and shook Gaster's hand. _"Thank you, I feel like I owe you now."_

"NO YOU DON'T, THIS IS ME PAYING MY DEBT TO YOU."

Asgore and Toriel put their arms around the two and smiled out to the crowd as they cheered.

Once the crowd settled down and the four broke away the King cleared his throat. "My wife and I have another announcement," he said grinning.

"We're going to be parents!" Toriel shouted out with great excitement.


	4. The Fall Out

Years passed by. Gaster built The Core as fast as he could and the Underground began to think of him as a hero who had given them not only power but hope of the future as Gaster announced that he was beginning to research the barrier. His employees seemed to worship him, soon becoming known as his Followers instead.

Gaster was happy with his work if not a bit stressed. He was rarely at his house he had bought in Snowdin, even when he was in Snowdin he spent most of his time in Grillby's bar. Spending time with his old friend.

He also spent a lot of time with the King and Queen. He'd go over to give them reports and end up staying for tea or lunch or dinner and then he'd spend time with the Royal family. He always really liked kids but it was harder to be around them since his nieces and nephews were killed, it brought back painful memories. Prince Asriel seemed to take a liking to him, however. He didn't know why and he tried to keep away from the Young Prince as much as he could...

Then one day when Gaster came in to give a report and Asriel came running over to him and hugged his leg. "Yay! Uncle Gaster's here!" He had called out to his parents.

Being called "Uncle" again had triggered memories he'd rather forget. Memories of his family he had lost. Like the first time his eldest sister, Ariel, told him, his brothers and other sisters that they were going to be aunties and uncles to memories of all the little babybones, first words, all the time he spent teaching them and playing with them...

He managed not to show his distress over something so small only because the Prince had called him "Uncle Gaster" not "Uncle Wingdings."

He still asked the King and Queen about it. They laughed and told him that Asriel really liked him and thought he was cool. As much as Gaster acted like he disapproved of it and as much as it brought back horrid memories he felt happy, it was like he really was gaining a new family in the Royal Family as well as in Grillby's.

Without really noticing it, Gaster grew closer to Prince Asriel. He would sit with the young prince and help him with his homework and he'd sometimes get dragged out to the Ruins with the Royal Family and end up joining the Prince and King in their games. It was fun but Gaster tried to keep it to a minimum, he had work to do.

* * *

He disapproved of Chara. Humans were nothing but bad news and even though Asgore and Toriel had hopes that adopting a human child would help negotiations when Gaster inevitably opened the barrier (even though he was far from it.) Gaster couldn't help but fear that Chara would be the end of them. He distrusted humans and he could see that Chara wasn't exactly a good person.

He kept a close eye on them. He wanted very much to experiment on them, there was so much he could learn by dissecting them or ripping out their soul and doing tests on that... But he couldn't do that, even if they weren't the King and Queen's child that would still be very much illegal. They were a living thing and therefore had rights. Besides they were a child, Gaster didn't know if he'd really be able to bring himself to harm a child. So Gaster kept those thoughts to himself and watched Chara carefully trying to learn everything he could from simply observing them.

He also tried to keep a close eye on Asriel. He didn't trust Chara, humans were evil and he didn't want the Prince to get hurt...

Then Chara became sick. They died.

Gaster had been in his lab, working on improving The Core when one of his Followers came running in.

"Dr Gaster!" He called running over in a panic, "Chara has died!"

Gaster nodded, Chara had been sick for a long time so news that they'd died didn't really shock him all that much, it was only a matter of time. He had tried to save them, really he did, but in the end they couldn't be saved.

"I'LL VISIT ASGORE AND TORIEL LATER TO OVER MY CONDOLENCES," He told his Follower, not even looking up for his computer screen that displaced a long page of code written in wingdings.

"Doctor, they require your presence now..."

"WHY? I'M VERY BUSY."

"Prince Asriel took Chara's soul."

This caught Gaster's attention and he turned fast. "REALLY? WHAT HAPPENED? I MUST STUDY HIM NOW!" Gaster stood up, he had no time to remove his lab coat and put on his hoodie or coat as he walked towards the door.

"Wait! Doctor Gaster!" His Follower stopped him by grabbing his sleeve and then ran round to block his path. "He took the soul and crossed the barrier with Chara... The humans... They... They thought he'd... Killed Chara, they attacked him..."

Gaster felt a cold chill run down his spine... Asriel had been like a nephew to him... He couldn't lose him as well... "HOW IS HE?" Gaster demanded but got no reply. "PLEASE TELL ME THE PRINCE IS ALIVE!"

"Prince Asriel was killed by humans."

Gaster turned and ran out of the door without another word after pushing his Follower out of the way. He ran as fast as he could to the castle. He could believe it, the Prince was dead... He'd cared for the boy but he hadn't shown it enough and he regretted that. He regretted so much. The humans had taken from him again... How much more could they hurt him.

He wanted them dead. Every. Last. One. Dead. Once he got out of the barrier he'd make them all pay, he'd do anything to kill all humans, anything. Even if that meant trading his soul and pushing away his new family...

He was filled with rage and hate.

He burst into the throne room. Asgore and Toriel were sitting on the floor, holding each other tightly as they cried. Gaster ran to them, panting and out of breath he spoke as he fell to his knees in front of his friends, "I AM SO, SO SORRY."

They said nothing but pulled Gaster in for an embrace. The three monsters who had all lost so much sat on the floor and cried on each other's shoulders. Nothing would be the same again. All hope was lost.

"What are we going to do?" Toriel whispered, once the three had calmed down a little.

"WE NEED TO MAKE THE HUMANS PAY," Gaster said not even trying to sound calm. "THEY TOOK EVERYTHING FROM ME AND YET THEY TAKE MORE. I SWEAR I'LL KILL THEM ALL."

"Gaster... That's not the way," Toriel scolded him, "we want peace and humans are stronger than us! Besides more death with just spell the end for everyone." She looked Gaster in the eye and pointed to his empty socket. "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind."

Gaster sighed at her and looked away. "I DON'T REALLY CARE. I WANT THEM DEAD AND IF THAT MAKES ME A BAD PERSON THEN I GUESS I AM ONE. NOTHING ELSE MATTERS TO ME, MY SPECIES WILL DIE WITH ME AND IT'S THEIR FAULT. I CAN'T FORGIVE THEM."

"You're not thinking straight, Gaster! Asgore, help me talk some sense into him!"

Asgore looked down at the ground, a frown on his face and his hands in fists. "No, he's right Tori, we can't let this go unpunished. We can't just let the humans walk all over us. They wiped out many species of monsters, they killed Gaster's whole family, every skeleton, and now they've taken my son."

Toriel looked at her husband in horror. "You've got to be kidding me! Asgore, you can't!"

He ignored her and turned to Gaster. "You said we'd need human souls or something with the power equal to human souls to open the barrier?"

Gaster nodded, "YES, I HAVE SPEND A GREAT AMOUNT OF TIME STUDYING THE BARRIER. IT'S THE ONLY WAY TO OPEN IT."

"Tell me again, how many souls will we need?" Asgore asked.

Toriel gasped, "Asgore, no you can't! I won't let you take human souls!"

Gaster hesitated, as much as he wanted revenge he couldn't let the King do it, he could do it. He couldn't let the King kill innocent people, he was too kind. It should be Gaster's burden to bear, he was the one who'd lost the most, he had nothing left to lose, Asgore had a lot to lose.

"How many?" Asgore asked again, firmer than before.

Gaster fixed his glasses and looked to the Queen who was giving him a firm look. "SEVEN... WE'LL NEED SEVEN HUMAN SOULS."

Asgore nodded and stood. "Seven..." he repeated as he stood up, "we'll get those souls. Chara fell so there will be more, we'll take the souls of those humans."

"You'll have to kill them..." Toriel said standing up and glaring at Asgore. "I won't let you do that! You will not kill innocent children."

Toriel was preparing a magical attack.

Gaster stood next to Toriel. "I AGREE WITH TORIEL," he said. The King and Queen both looked at him in shock, they both had thought he'd be on Asgore's side. "MY KING, I CANNOT LET YOU KILL CHILDREN, YOU ARE NOT THE KIND OF PERSON TO DO THAT."

"You do not know if the humans who fall will all be children, they could be adults." Asgore turned away and began to walk towards the balcony.

"THEY COULD BE CHILDREN."

"Even if they are adults they are still innocent!" Toriel called as she ran in front of Asgore to block his path.

"You don't know that. They might be bad people. Even if they're not we can't wait for bad people to fall it'll take too long. I'm doing this for the people, they deserve freedom, from the Underground, from humans. I will do what I must."

Tears were running down the Queen's face. "We have to take the moral high ground, be better than the humans! I will not let you stoop to their level!"

"I don't care, I want revenge. Asriel deserves that or he died for nothing... Tori please don't get in my way. I don't want to fight you."

"Don't 'Tori' me! You're angry I understand, I am too but this isn't the answer!" She threw a fireball at him. Asgore threw one back, they were fighting. Fire flying back and forth, either hitting, whether that was because they missed on purpose or if they were dodging Gaster didn't know nor care.

Gaster just stood at the side not knowing what to do. He didn't want his friends to fight... "I THINK WE ALL NEED TO CALM DOWN AND TALK THINGS THROUGH. PERHAPS WE SHOULD CALL THE OTHER COURT MEMBERS HERE?" He said, he had to stop them. The Underground needed them more than ever, they couldn't fight now, as much as Gaster wanted to side with the King, he needed to be the voice of reason. He had to stay neutral. Gaster summoned two magic hands and used them to push Asgore and Toriel back a little, not wanting to risk putting himself in danger.

Asgore turned around to face him. "Don't you dare try to stop me, Gaster! You want revenge as much as I do! You can't let the humans get away with the mass genocide of your people!"

"I WON'T! BUT I WILL NOT LET YOU BEAR THE BURDEN, THERE MUST BE ANOTHER WAY! A WAY THAT LET'S US HAVE REVENGE WITHOUT KILLING CHILDREN!"

"My mind is made. I will do this, it's for the greater good."

"Asgore, I will not fight you but know this, if you do this I'm leaving you." Toriel stood firm. "I'll protect the humans from you if I have to!"

Asgore looked hurt by what the Queen had said but he did not back down. "So be it." He walked forward, pushing past his soon to be ex-wife and stepped out onto the balcony.

Monsters had gathered, having heard the news, they crowded around desperate for any information. Asgore stepped out and placed his hands on the railing.

Gaster looked at the Queen and sighed. He wanted to join the King but he didn't want Toriel to leave, and he didn't want her to hate him. He was torn between his two friends but he knew he had to stay by Asgore's side.

"Gaster, if he makes the announcement I think he will, I'm leaving. Come with me?" She placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I CAN'T. I WANT HUMANS DEAD TO, JUST NOT LIKE THIS. I WON'T BE LIKE THEM, I DON'T WANT TO HURT ANYONE WHO CAN'T FIGHT BACK BUT I DO WANT TO HURT HUMANS. I'D KILL THEM ALL, MYSELF IF I COULD. I JUST DON'T KNOW IF I HAVE IT IN ME TO HARM A CHILD."

She sighed, she knew she couldn't change his mind but maybe Gaster could change the King's mind. "Then promise me this... Take care of him for me and look for another way to open the barrier. Find a way for peace without bloodshed."

"THAT'S ONE BIG PROMISE, I'M NOT SURE I CAN KEEP IT BUT I WILL TRY."

Gaster looked at the Queen one last time before he to turned and joined the King on the balcony and stood on his right hand side. Asgore had just finished confirming the news that Asriel and Chara were dead.

"I will not let humanity's crimes go unpunished!" Asgore announced. "More humans will fall and when they do I will take their souls. We only need seven and once the barrier is down humanity will feel our wrath! We will all live on the surface in peace, our suffering will end! I will destroy humanity!"

The monsters below cheered in excitement and began chanting, "long live King Asgore!"

Although some began to ask questions and raise fears that if another war was started then they'd all be killed, after all humans were much stronger.

Gaster spoke out, he knew what would happen once Asgore had all the souls, he done a lot of research on them after all. "OUR REVENGE WILL COME FAST ONCE WE HAVE THE SOULS. ONCE ASGORE OR ANY OTHER BOSS MONSTER ABSORBS SEVEN HUMAN SOULS THEIR POWER WILL BE THAT OF A GOD. WE WILL NOT LOSE, I WILL MAKE SURE OF THAT. I'LL WORK HARDER TO MAKE SURE WE'RE STRONG ENOUGH TO WIN."

The monsters cheered again this time calling out Gaster's name as well as Asgore's.

"Long live King Asgore!"

"Long live the Great Dr Gaster!"

Gaster smirked at that, what a huge ego boost that was. He felt that it was rather appropriate after all he was pretty great.

The two friends stood together, Asgore's arm around Gaster's shoulders as they make promises of freedom to the people, giving them hope.

When they went back inside Toriel was no longer there, she'd really left. Gaster noticed that Asgore was close to tears. Gaster wasn't good with emotions, he never had been. His was a logical person, emotions were often times illogical but he couldn't let Asgore break down, not alone.

He hugged the King and he felt Asgore's strong arms wrap around his skinny frame as he cried. "Please don't leave me as well," Asgore sobbed out.

"I WON'T. I'LL DO ANYTHING TO HELP YOU. IF YOU WANT I CAN KILL THEM FOR YOU, I DON'T MIND."

"No, I am the King, it's my responsibility. I will not push it onto you, especially when I know for a fact that you don't want to. Please concentrate on your research. Make the improvements to The Core you were talking about, look into the barrier, do all the other work you have talked about. I'll do what I have to do."

"DON'T SUFFER ALONE, I'M HERE FOR YOU."

"Thank you, my friend," Asgore let go of Gaster and looked down at the ground. "I don't want to be alone, will you stay with me for tonight?"

"Of course, let's go to Grillby's. I think we both need a few drinks."

Asgore nodded weakly and he followed the Doctor out of the castle. They avoided as many people as they could on the long walk to Snowdin, they didn't talk much and when they reached Grillby's, he was closed. That didn't matter to them because Grillby let them in anyway. Grillby offered his condolences and he was pulled into a hug by Asgore. Asgore held the flame tightly in his arms for a few minutes before releasing him to let him go to the bar and begin to pour them all shots.

They didn't talk at all, the three of them were just sitting in the dark, empty bar, slowly getting drunk together in silence.


	5. Whoops

Many years later another human fell. Asgore killed it. As Gaster suspected the act killed Asgore inside. He was devastated that he had really taken the life of a child. Gaster did his best to comfort him and tried once again to convince Asgore to let him do the killing. Asgore refused.

Gaster just sighed as he looked at the light blue soul in the container he had built to keep the souls from breaking until it was time to absorb them. There was so much he could learn from the soul... If he found out what it was make of he might be able to make an artificial soul then Asgore wouldn't have to kill. Was that even possible? Gaster thought it was after all everything just make of magic and atoms, energy and chemicals. He just needed to find out what was in the soul and he needed to see it's molecular structure.

"WILL YOU AT LEAST LET ME BORROW THE SOUL? I WOULD VERY MUCH LIKE TO STUDY IT. I WANT TO FIND OUT WHAT MAKES UP A HUMAN SOUL."

Asgore stared at the soul for a while, tears still in his eyes. "Studying it will help a lot..." He muttered, "very well, but Gaster, please don't damage it."

"RELAX. I KNOW HOW IMPORTANT IT IS. I WILL NOT DAMAGE IT. YOU'LL GET IT BACK WITHOUT A SCRATCH, I PROMISE."

Asgore trusted his friend and handed over the soul. Gaster was very excited to have a real soul to study. He very much wanted to experiment on it but he'd promised the King he wouldn't damage it. He couldn't risk experimentation, they couldn't afford the set back it would cause should he shatter it by accident. Who knew when the next human would fall? It would take a long time for them to get seven, he didn't want to make that seven turn to eight just because he was careless.

He placed the soul carefully on the table. He wouldn't remove it, he'd need to scan it and maybe take a small sample. He wasted no time in getting to work.

* * *

"SOUL STUDY, ENTRY NUMBER ONE.

THE SCAN AND SAMPLE'S RESULTS ARE FASCINATING.

THE STRUCTURE IS COMPLEX BUT I'M SURE I CAN RECREATE IT.

THERE ARE TRAITS IN THE SOUL THAT MONSTER'S DON'T HAVE.

NOT IN THESE NUMBERS.

LIKE DETERMINATION.

THE DOMINANT TRAIT IS PATIENCE."

* * *

"SOUL STUDY, ENTRY NUMBER TWO.

I HAVE FIGURED OUT THE STRUCTURE.

IT IS POSSIBLE TO MAKE A ARTIFICIAL SOUL.

I'VE MADE AN EMPTY SOUL STRUCTURE.

I WILL INJECT IT WITH PATIENCE AND DETERMINATION."

* * *

"SOUL STUDY, ENTRY NUMBER THREE.

FAILURE.

THE ARTIFICIAL SOUL SHATTERED IN AN INSTANT.

THE STRUCTURE WAS FINE, NO PROBLEMS THERE.

THE LEVEL OF PATIENCE AND/OR DETERMINATION MUST HAVE BEEN WRONG.

WELL...

CAN'T EXPECT PERFECT RESULTS RIGHT AWAY."

* * *

Gaster sat with his head in is hands as once again the soul he created shattered. He couldn't keep going with trial and error, he didn't have a lot of the human traits and was too scared to take anymore from the real soul in case it shattered it. He had to think carefully. He really needed another soul, there must be differences in each soul. If he had another one to compare, things might be easier.

* * *

"SOUL STUDY, ENTRY NUMBER FOUR.

I FELT IT POINTLESS MENTIONING EVERY FAILURE IN THESE JOURNALS.

DETAILS OF THE EXPERIMENTS CAN BE FOUND IN FOLDER NUMBER 66.

ANOTHER HUMAN FELL AND WAS KILLED BY ASGORE.

THIS SOUL WAS ORANGE.

IT'S DOMINANT TRAIT WAS BRAVERY.

THE COMMON TRAIT IN BOTH WAS DETERMINATION.

COULD DETERMINATION BE THE KEY?"

* * *

"SOUL STUDY, ENTRY NUMBER FIVE.

I TRIED TO INJECT AN ARTIFICIAL SOUL WITH DETERMINATION ONLY.

IT FAILED FASTER THAN MOST.

I THOUGHT THAT PERHAPS DETERMINATION NEEDS TO BE BALANCED OUT WITH ANOTHER TRAIT TO WORK.

BUT THAT IS NOT THE CASE...

AFTER REVIEWING OLD FOOTAGE I DISCOVERED THAT CHARA'S DOMINANT TRAIT WAS DETERMINATION.

THEIR SOUL WAS RED AFTER ALL."

* * *

Gaster swiped the papers off his desk in rage. Yet another failure. It was possible, he was doing something wrong but he didn't know what. He wanted to help Asgore but it was nothing but failure after failure.

He stormed out of his lab before he broke something important. He needed to blow off some steam. He pulled on his long black coat and started on the walk to Waterfall. He liked Waterfall, he found the sound of water to be rather relaxing, he liked to look at the glowing crystals in the ceiling, it reminded him of the sky and he enjoyed listening the the hopeful wishes that the Echo Flowers repeated. He was much too angry to enjoy such things, however and really just wanted to attack something so he went to the royal guards' training grounds. There he could fight someone or he could blow up something without getting in trouble. He was a powerful boss skeleton so the guards liked training with him.

He didn't really want to fight anyone right now, however. He was so angry with his constant failures that he really just wanted to cause destruction.

The young fish monster was there, again, trying to challenge everyone to a fight. No one took her seriously, Gaster figured she was only about four or five, being treated like the little child she was really made her mad. When she saw Gaster, however, her face lit up and she came running up to him.

"Hey, Hey! Dr Gaster! Fight me!" She called.

He rolled his eyes, he really wasn't in the mood for this. "NOT NOW, UNDYNE. DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU COULD BEAT ME ANYWAY?"

"I won't know unless I try!"

"THE ANSWER IS NO, CHILD. I'M NOT HERE TO FIGHT ANYONE. I'M GOING TO BLOW SOMETHING UP WITH MY BLASTERS."

"Cool!" Undyne smiled up at him, "can I watch?"

"NO, GO AWAY." He shooed her off and she sulked away, hopefully not to bug anyone else.

Gaster walked faster to an open space. Here he could let loose and not worry about hurting anyone. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath focusing on all his rage he kept deep down inside himself and let it all out. With a loud war cry and eye glowing purple, he summoned two huge blasters and fired them, quickly followed with bones, some blue. He totally let lose, getting rid of his all his calm, letting out the real monster that was inside himself and just destroyed everything in sight. In his mind all he saw was the battlefield and his family dying before him.

"Wow!" He heard a voice from behind him and he turned fast, without thinking. He was still in the battle. He didn't think as he summoned a blaster to attack whoever was stupid enough to sneak up on him.

He realised at the last second that it was Undyne that was behind him, not a human solider. It was too late to call off his blaster, so he turned her soul blue instead and pushed her back as the beam fired, he held her where he pushed her against a nearby wall, too shaken up to let her go.

"That. Was. Awesome!" She called out. "Boss monsters sure are strong!"

Gaster was mad, really mad. "YOU IDIOT! DO YOU KNOW HOW DANGEROUS THAT WAS!? I COULD'VE KILLED YOU! NEVER, EVER DO THAT AGAIN YOU HEAR ME!" He yelled at her, signing so fast. Undyne looked scared, he didn't know if she could really understand him.

"S-sorry!" She stuttered out. "But that _was_ really cool!"

Gaster sighed, he didn't let go of her soul as he walked closer. "DON'T DO THAT AGAIN." He said slowly.

She nodded, "alright I get it! Don't tell Gerson, he'll be mad with me if he found out! Then he'd tell my parents and they'll ground me!"

"FINE."

The silence was awkward, Gaster didn't know why he kept hold of her soul, he was just angry and he need to calm down before he did anything with his magic. He stared Undyne down. He hoped she'd learnt her lesson about sneaking up on him. Gaster didn't know what he'd have done if he'd killed her, he would never have been able to forgive himself.

His eye lowered and looked at her soul. The structure of a monster's soul really wasn't much different from a human one, it was just upside-down and he did have better access to monster souls than he did human, he could study his own soul...

Gaster continued to stare at the soul... What could he learn from monsters' souls...? Would it help at all?

It was worth a try, anything was at this point. He let Undyne go and she fell to her knees, his magic clearly was too overpowering for a child. He didn't think about it, he had an idea and left as fast as he could.

* * *

"ARTIFICIAL MONSTER SOUL, ENTRY NUMBER ONE.

IN ORDER TO FULLY UNDERSTAND HUMAN SOULS I MUST FIRST UNDERSTAND A MONSTER'S.

I MUST UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCES AND THE SIMILARITIES.

IT WON'T BREAK THE BARRIER BUT IT'LL GIVE ME SOMETHING TO EXPERIMENT ON.

A GREATER UNDERSTANDING OF SOULS MAY EVEN LEAD TO SOMETHING GOOD; A NEW WAY TO HEAL OR A WAY TO MAKE MONSTERS MORE POWERFUL.

THIS WILL BE INTERESTING."

* * *

"ARTIFICIAL MONSTER SOUL, ENTRY NUMBER TWO.

ONCE AGAIN FAILURE, AFTER FAILURE.

BUT IT MATTERS NOT.

SIX FAILURES I'VE HAD ON THIS PROJECT ALONE.

BUT I'VE LEARNT SOMETHING.

SOULS ARE BIOLOGICAL.

THEY MAY NEED DNA AND OF COURSE MONSTER SOULS NEED MAGIC.

I CAN'T JUST USE ANY MONSTER'S DNA.

USING ANOTHER MONSTER FOR EXPERIMENTATION WOULD BE UNETHICAL.

I'VE NO CHOICE BUT TO USE MY OWN."

* * *

Gaster, took a deep breath. He'd created the structure, he had most of the chemicals needed to create a soul, he just needed a good DNA sample. His shin was the best place to get to his marrow, that would be the best way to get his DNA.

The needle was sharp and long. It'd hurt and he'd be lying if he said he wasn't scared. But he had to do this for monster-kind, for Asgore, for Toriel...

He rolled up his pants... deep breath, deep breath, deep breath... and stabbed himself in shin with the needle, he had no time to waste, he extracted his DNA. Another deep breath.

As much as he wanted to patch up the wound he had no time. He injected the ingredients into the soul and turned it blue with his magic in an attempt to hold it together as well as push some of his magic into it, after all monster were made of magic. He concentrated on filling it with as much magic as he could, calling fourth his own soul and letting his own magic radiate off of it and into the fake soul.

It didn't shatter. That was good. He carefully placed the soul into a capsule. And sat back once the capsule was sealed. He'd done it, the soul was stable at least for now. He'd wait a few days to make sure it was truly stable then he could begin with his experiments. He had many in mind. Most he couldn't do with a real soul and he most certainly couldn't do with a living person.

He smiled at the success and got up. He limped over to the first aid kit and dressed his wound. Then he gently picked up the capsule and placed it in the closet, after all his success may distract him and he had other projects to work on. He had to improve The Core, the internet's speed wasn't good enough in Snowdin...

* * *

"ARTIFICIAL MONSTER SOUL, ENTRY NUMBER THREE.

IT'S BEEN TWO DAYS.

THE SOUL SEEMS STABLE.

THIS IS EXCITING.

I'M TEMPTED TO START EXPERIMENTATION NOW.

BUT I MUST BE CAREFUL.

I CAN ALWAYS MAKE ANOTHER IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG BUT IT HURT AND WAS QUITE EXHAUSTING SO I'D RATHER KEEP THIS ONE FOR AS LONG AS I CAN.

THREE MORE DAYS SHOULD BE FINE."

* * *

"ARTIFICIAL MONSTER SOUL, ENTRY NUMBER FOUR.

I MAY HAVE MADE A MISTAKE.

THE SOUL IS FINE.

BUT IT HAS CREATED A MAGICAL MEMBRANE AROUND ITSELF.

IT LOOKS LIKE IT MAY BE CREATING A BODY...

THIS WASN'T MEANT TO HAPPEN...

IT WAS MEANT TO ONLY BE A NON SENTIENT SOUL.

IT'S NOT MEANT TO BE ALIVE.

I CAN'T EXPERIMENT ON SOMETHING ALIVE.

THAT'S ILLEGAL.

AND IF I CAN'T EXPERIMENT ON IT, THEN IT'S USELESS.

I'LL OBSERVE IT FOR NOW, IT MAY NOT BE ALIVE."

* * *

Gaster watched the soul closely, it's 'body' changed over the course of a few months. Going from a blob to two connected blobs, to six, etc. The body was getting arms and legs and fingers and toes and a head... But it was still just a blue blob... It didn't really look like a monster. Gaster made sure to check on it once a day and noted any changes in a notebook, the whole thing was fascinating but Gaster couldn't dedicate much time to it, after all it was now clear it wasn't going to help in opening the barrier. Gaster merely kept it out of curiosity.

Gaster walked into his office after a much needed day off. He'd spent the day getting drunk at Grillby's and was nursing a hangover. He removed his hoodie hanging it in the closet and pulled on his lab coat. He couldn't afford to take it easy, no matter how bad the hangover was.

He took a couple of pills for his hangover and picked up his research papers before he walked out of his office and into the small lab where the soul was kept. He would check on it really quickly since he didn't check on it the day before and then he'd get on with his other work.

He spotted the soul the second he opened the door as it was sitting in the centre of the room and his eye widened. He gasped and dropped the papers he was carrying. The blob had changed a lot... It wasn't a blob anymore. Bones, surrounded by a thick flashing glow of blue and yellow but there was bones. They were tiny and there was a lot more bones than Gaster had, after all in the capsule was a baby... And not just any baby, a baby skeleton...

Gaster was filled with mixed feelings as he walked to the capsule. His experiment had truly failed, he couldn't experiment on this, even if it wasn't alive, not when it looked like him.

Tears filled his good eye and he brought his hands up to cover his mouth... It had been so long since he'd seen another skeleton... He didn't even have pictures... And here in front of him was a babybones...

Memories flowed back to him of the first time he held his niblings... They were so tiny... They never got to grow up...

The tears fell as he placed his hands on the glass. "PLEASE... PLEASE... OH GOD, LET IT BE ALIVE!" Gaster said aloud. If it was alive it meant he really couldn't experiment on it but if it was alive... Then he wasn't alone, he wasn't the last of his kind and this thing... No, this child, was his...

The child moved. They threw out an arm and kicked a leg and Gaster collapsed on the floor in tears, his hands still on the glass. He wasn't the last skeleton... And he was a father, after all it was his DNA and his magic the child had.

His mind raced, he didn't know what to do. He couldn't dispose of it; the child was alive, a failed experiment but alive. He'd accidentally created a child, another skeleton. "I'M NOT ALONE... OH GOD, I'M NOT ALONE ANYMORE," he couldn't believe it, he gave up on saving his species long ago, he'd come to terms with the fact that he was the last and that skeletons would end with him but here was a child, a pure blood skeleton, there was hope.

But he wasn't fit to be a parent... How was he meant to raise a child? He worked 24/7, his days off were rare and he couldn't let a child run around the lab, it just wasn't safe. He couldn't give up his work, it was important, he was the smartest monster, no one could do this but him, he had no time for a child and he was far from a good role model. He was hateful and vengeful, he got angry easily... He'd almost killed Undyne...

The child couldn't stay with him as much as he wanted to keep them, he couldn't. He'd been alone for so long, he wanted to keep the baby, he wanted to be with skeletons again but he had to be reasonable, he couldn't keep the child. He looked back up at the infant that was curled up in the capsule. He'd keep the child safe until it was time for them to be 'born,' then he'd keep them in the lab for a while to make sure they were healthy, then he'd give them up. He could find an orphanage easily, after all hundreds of children had lost their parents in the war. His child would be better off without him...

He pulled himself up and wiped his eyes. He couldn't leave the infant in the small, cramped capsule, he'd have to make a bigger one before the child grew any bigger. He tried his best not to stare at it, he couldn't get attached, it'd just make it harder to give them up.

* * *

"THE CHILD, ENTRY NUMBER ONE.

THE MOVE TO THE BIGGER CAPSULE WAS A SUCCESS.

SO WERE THE LIFE SUPPORT CABLES AND MAGICAL FLUID.

BUT I AM BEGINNING TO THINK THE NEW CAPSULE IS TOO BIG.

I NEVER DESIGNED THE SOUL TO HAVE A BODY SO IT'S NOT VERY STRONG.

THE CHILD WILL BE SMALLER THAN AVERAGE.

I HOPE THAT WILL NOT AFFECT THEIR HEALTH."

* * *

"THE CHILD, ENTRY NUMBER TWO.

GROWTH SEEMS TO BE CONSISTENT.

IT IS A MALE.

HE DOESN'T MOVE MUCH.

THIS IS MILDLY CONCERNING."

* * *

"THE CHILD, ENTRY NUMBER THREE.

HE'S STARTED TO GAIN HP.

ONLY ONE SO FAR.

IT'LL GO UP.

BUT IT'S REALLY SLOW, HE'S LATE ON GAINING THE ONE HE HAS.

HE WON'T HAVE HIGH HP, HE WON'T HAVE MUCH HOPE...

BUT HE'LL BE PROTECTED, I'LL MAKE SURE OF THAT."

* * *

"THE CHILD, ENTRY NUMBER FOUR.

I'M A FAILURE, YET AGAIN...

HE STOPPED BEING AN EXPERIMENT LONG AGO...

BUT I'M GETTING ATTACHED.

I CAN'T STOP LOOKING AT HIM, WATCHING HIS VERY RARE MOVEMENT AND WATCHING HIM REST.

I CAN'T JUSTIFY IT AS SCIENTIFIC OBSERVATION.

I CARE FOR THE CHILD...

_MY SON..._

BUT I HAVE TO GIVE HIM AWAY...

MAYBE I SHOULD LOOK FOR HELP NOW AND STOP KEEPING THIS SECRET, BEFORE I GET EVEN MORE ATTACHED TO HIM..."

* * *

"THE CHILD, ENTRY NUMBER FIVE.

I'M A COWARD.

I CAN'T BRING MYSELF TO TELL ASGORE OR ANYONE ELSE.

I DON'T WANT THEM TO TAKE _MY SON_ FROM ME.

I WANT TO KEEP HIM.

HE OPENED HIS EYES TODAY.

HE LOOKED RIGHT AT ME.

I LOVE HIM, I CAN'T GIVE HIM UP, _I WON'T._

HE'S WEAK AND SMALL AND...

HE'S A SKELETON.

I'M NOT ALONE...

THAT'S ALL I CAN THINK.

I'LL MAKE IT WORK SOMEHOW...

I CAN RAISE HIM SOMEHOW.

I'M THE GREAT GASTER, I CAN RAISE A CHILD..."

* * *

Gaster finished writing the journal entry at his desk in his lab. He rubbed the back of his skull and ran his fingers over his scars. He looked across the room to his son in the capsule, the child was staring right at him, Gaster didn't know if he could really see him or not. It was still too early for him to be 'born' so he could still be blind but then again the way he stared...

Gaster groaned, in another month he'd be born... Gaster didn't have anything he'd need for the infant other than a makeshift crib which had no mattress or sheets, that he'd made to keep the child in temporarily until he was sure he was okay, then he'd give him up but now he wanted to keep the child.

He just couldn't give his son away, but Gaster didn't know how to raise a child. He had no toys or food, the lab wasn't child safe.

Gaster let out a sigh... "I HAVE A MONTH... I CAN GET EVERYTHING READY IN A MONTH... I SHOULD GO TO ASGORE... HE'LL KNOW WHAT TO DO. I JUST HOPE HE WON'T TAKE YOU AWAY FROM ME..." Gaster spoke to his son, not knowing if he could hear him or not.

Gaster had no reason to believe Asgore would take his son away but he was well aware he wasn't really a good person. Asgore was kind and believed in him but if he had any reason to believe the child was in danger...

Gaster had no choice, he couldn't do it alone. If he explained it to him, Asgore would understand, Asgore would help. He had no idea how his friend and King would react but he had to tell him. He gathered up his research and photos. He'd taken pictures at every stage. Only a few at a time in the beginning after all that was for science but once the child took the form of a skeleton, Gaster had taken a lot more. He wanted a good record of pictures to look back on in ten, twenty, thirty years time, once his son was grown up.

He placed the papers in a bag. If he was going to Asgore he had to go now. He looked back at his son, who was still looking at him with his big round eyes. Gaster touched the glass and smiled at the babybones inside. "I'LL BE BACK SOON. I PROMISE TO GIVE YOU A GOOD LIFE, MY PRECIOUS SON, BUT I NEED HELP."

It was hard for Gaster to pull himself away, he just wanted to stay with his child but he had to go before he chickened out because of some irrational fear that Asgore will decide he was unfit to be a father.

He checked his son one last time before leaving. His HP was still one. Gaster had hoped it'd go up but it hadn't, he wanted his son to be stronger than that. One HP was dangerous but he knew that most children gained most of their HP in the final month so it would go up at least a little.

He finally tore himself away and began to walk out of the lab. He'd be really quick...


	6. sans.

Gaster walked through the hall as fast as he could, he really didn't want to be away from the lab for long, not only did he have his son to worry about but he had so much work to do. He needed to make more improvements to the core, he still had to work out how to make a artificial human soul or find some other way to break the barrier. He also had to check on his Followers and look over their work. He was stressed and overworked. He couldn't even remember the last time he'd slept properly.

He passed by one of the Followers' labs just as the door opened. He was about to say hello to whatever Follower came out but instead he saw a little girl. Alphys, he belived her name was. He wondered why she was even here, she was about the same age as Undyne. Gaster didn't mind his Followers bringing their kids to work every now and then during less busy and less dangerous times but everyone was really busy right now, he could've have a little kid getting in the way.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?" Gaster asked.

"EEK!" Alphys jumped and turned to face Gaster, "o-oh Dr G-Gaster, I... I'm not getting i-in the w-way, I-I was just b-bringing my Father his l-lunch that he f-forgot and M-Mother is r-really b-busy..."

Gaster smiled at her, she was a very shy child and always stuttered but he knew she was very smart, her father often bragged about her. "WELL, THAT'S ALRIGHT THEN, BUT YOU REALLY SHOULDN'T BE WONDERING AROUND THE LABS ALONE."

"I-I'm sorry. I'm n-not going t-to go s-somewhere I s-shouldn't. I know the w-way h-home."

He sighed he didn't want to deal with her, he had work to do... But he couldn't just let her go off on her own, the labs weren't safe for kids, that was something he'd have to fix if he was keeping his son. He supposed he could walk her home, it was on route to Asgore's castle.

Gaster was really just procrastinating.

"I'LL TAKE YOU HOME."

"Oh, y-you don't h-have to," Alphys shook her head, "I d-don't want to w-waste your t-time."

"NONSENSE," Gaster took her hand so she wouldn't run off. "I'M ON MY WAY TO SEE THE KING, WE'RE GOING THE SAME WAY, WE MIGHT AS WELL GO TOGETHER."

"Okay," Alphys muttered and the two began to walk off quietly.

Gaster didn't mind the silence, he knew Alphys was shy and the quiet gave him time to think. He supposed he was good with kids like Alphys, she was quiet and intelligent, she didn't cause trouble and although she asked a lot of questions, they were mostly about science, he didn't mind that. Undyne was loud and full of energy, she ran around recklessly and caused trouble, Gaster couldn't handle kids like her. He hoped his son would be more like Alphys than Undyne...

He wondered what his son really would be like... He couldn't wait to teach him, he'd make sure he had high grades and he would be very happy if he went into science, of course he wouldn't push that on him, he'd be proud of whatever his child choose to do.

He knew it'd be hard. He wouldn't get much sleep, not like he go a lot anyway. He hoped his son wouldn't be a difficult child. Then he thought about how one day he'd be a teen. He dreaded that, honestly. Mainly because he'd be a really horrible teen, he'd gone through an 'emo phase' in his early teen years, it was really cringe, he was glad no pictures had survived of that. He remembered his teenage rebellion, staying out late, getting drunk alone and fighting with and making his parents worry. He'd started smoking, a habit he couldn't really get rid of. The only reason he didn't smoke much anymore was because he was so busy, he had no time to and he couldn't smoke in the lab, with all the flammable items around.

He defiantly didn't want his son to turn out like he had been in his teens...

Gaster needed to stop thinking so far into the future. He didn't know what would happen, his son wasn't born yet and he did only have one HP. He just kept telling himself it'd be okay. Sure he didn't know how to raise a kid but he'd get help.

"D-Dr Gaster?" Alphys asked.

"YES?"

"Are you a-alright?"

"I'M FINE, JUST THINKING."

She nodded. "U-um..."

Gaster down at Alphys it looked like she wanted to say something. "WHAT IS IT?" He asked.

"O-oh I... Um... Well F-Father had b-been showing me how to b-build r-robots. I w-want to make one myself t-to s-surprise him b-but I g-got s-stuck... Um c-could you maybe t-take a quick l-look? A-and maybe g-give me a h-hint?"

Gaster was close to saying no, he was the royal scientist he didn't have time to mess around with kids. However, he had to keep a positive image which meant he couldn't be an ass to his Follower's kids and he was about to be a father himself, he could use some practice with kids. Plus he really did have a soft spot for children... and that would be an excuse not to see Asgore yet...

"ALRIGHT, AS LONG AS IT'S FAST," he said.

Alphys smiled. "Yay, thank you Dr Gaster!" She called out not stuttering this time.

"JUST DON'T MAKE A HABIT OF IT. I HAVE WORK TO DO AND FROM WHAT YOUR FATHER SAYS ABOUT YOU I KNOW YOU CAN FIGURE IT OUT. YOU'LL BE A GREAT SCIENTIST ONE DAY."

Alphys's smile got bigger hearing him say that, but it quickly fell. "I-I'll never be a-as good as y-you."

_THAT'S TRUE,_ Gaster thought but he couldn't say that. He was about to say something to encourage her but was interrupted by the ground beginning to shake.

An earthquake... There hadn't been one in a long time, not since he was on the surface. His first thought was of The Core, the lab was a strong building and unlikely to be damaged badly but The Core was being upgraded all the time, it wasn't very stable in some places and if part of it was damaged then they'd lose power in some areas. Then he thought of his friends, Asgore would be fine, he was too strong to be hurt in a falling building plus the castle was also a strong building but Grillby and his family... If the quake burst a water pipe and their homes and work places flooded...

He couldn't think about this right now. Alphys was panicking and it was hard to stay standing.

He pulled her to the ground. "STAY DOWN! COVER YOUR HEAD! IT'S OKAY, WE'LL BE OKAY." He tried to calm her, she was hyperventilating, clearly scared. "IT'S JUST AN EARTHQUAKE. WE'RE SAFE HERE."

Alphys nodded and stayed still. She was worried about her mother, the lab may be stable but other buildings might not be able to stay standing.

Gaster was concerned about Alphys but he was more worried about his son, he had to get to his lab. What if something damaged the capsule or the life support machines? The building wouldn't fall but that didn't mean that other things couldn't fall and break things. The capsule was keeping his son alive until he was strong enough to be 'born' if something happened to it or the power supply he didn't know if the child would make it. The human souls would be fine they weren't relying on electricity to keep them stable, his child was. He had tubes in his soul giving him nutrients and magic and he was in a fluid that was helping him by giving him energy to grow and protecting him. Gaster had to make sure everything was still alright.

He knew that he should stay were he was. He knew that he shouldn't move but he had to so he stood slowly and balanced himself. "STAY HERE," he told Alphys.

"W-what are you d-doing?"

"I HAVE TO MAKE SURE MY... EXPERIMENT... IS NOT HARMED." Gaster hated himself for referring to his son as an experiment, he may have started out that way but now he wasn't. He couldn't just say 'my son' since no one knew about him yet and the first person he told would definitely not be a child; he didn't want rumours to be spread. He had to come out and say it himself.

Alphys opened her mouth about to speak but there was a sudden click and the lights went out.

Gaster froze. "...NO... NO NO NO NO!" His son needed the power on. He didn't have a back-up generator yet, it was something his Followers had been working on. He couldn't let his son die, not now, not when he had just deiced to keep him, not when he was finally not the last.

He took off running in a panic. The ground was still shaking but he ignored it as best he could as ran as fast as he could into his lab.

He grabbed a flash light from his desk and turned it on. The capsule had lost all power and his son was laying suspended in the fluid, limp and unconscious. Gaster tried not to panic, he had to save his child, the only way he could do that would be to take him out of the capsule... Prematurely... His HP would never raise above one, at least not easily, but it was better if he was fragile than him being dust.

He manually drained the fluid with a lever that opened the bottom of the capsule a little. The child floated down and lay on the bottom.

The earthquake had stopped.

Gaster took no notice as he opened the top of the capsule.

"What's that?"

Gaster turned fast. Alphys had followed him... How could he forget about her? She was scared of course she followed the only adult that was close by...

Gaster sighed, well he couldn't not tell her now. "THAT IS A BABY SKELETON."

"H-how?"

"I CAN'T EXPLAIN THIS RIGHT NOW, HE'S DYING! EITHER HELP OR GO AWAY!" Gaster snapped, he didn't really mean to, he was scared and mad at himself for not protecting his child better.

"W-what can I d-do to h-help?"

Gaster pulled off his lab coat and folded it up before placing it in the crib hoping it'd give the child something soft to lay on. He then he leaned into the capsule and carefully lifted his child out and placed him in the makeshift crib.

"HE'S NOT BREATHING," Gaster was panicking. The child needed oxygen and Gaster needed to get some medicine in him to keep him alive. "ALPHYS, IN MY OFFICE THERE IS A BOX LABELLED 'SOUL ENHANCER' BRING THAT TO ME."

She nodded and ran off. Gaster wasted no time in pulling over an oxygen cylinder and mask that was in the corner of the room. He connected the mask and put it over his son's face making sure it covered his 'nose' and mouth and then turned the oxygen on. After a few seconds Gaster saw his ribs rise and fall slightly. He was breathing but barely.

Alphys returned with the box and Gaster took it. He pulled out the bag of medicine. He hoped that this would be enough to strengthen the child, his soul was so weak...

He hung the bag up and connected a long tube, it was a drip that he'd connect to the soul. He was scared to stick a needle in such a fragile soul but if he didn't then the child would die. He did it fast.

He then grabbed a small scanner, it ran on batteries so it should work. He scanned his son. HP: one, it wasn't falling, good. DEF: one, ATK: one, that really wasn't good...

But at least he was alive and in a stable condition at least for now.

Gaster slowly walked to his seat and sat with a thud. He let out a breath in relief. He couldn't think right now. He son was premature, he was 'born' now and no one even knew he existed. Gaster had needed that month. He had no food for him. Asgore didn't know.

"Um... Dr Gaster... I-I h-have q-questions." Alphys stuttered quietly.

"I KNOW BUT I DON'T HAVE THE TIME OR ENERGY TO ANSWER THEM. GO FIND YOUR FATHER AND BRING HIM HERE. DON'T TELL ANYONE ABOUT THE BABY THOUGH. I DON'T WANT ANY RUMOURS TO SPREAD."

He knew how people gossiped, he didn't want people to think he was having some kind of affair or worse; have people think he was experimenting on babies.

He got up once Alphys ran off. His child was still unconscious and he was shivering. Gaster had no blankets and the child was still covered in the fluid. He grabbed an old towel he used to dry his hands when he washed them in between experiments and very carefully wiped the child down. Then he went next door and grabbed his hoodie. It'd have to do. He went back and placed the hoodie over the baby, making sure not to move the drip.

"PLEASE DON'T DIE... YOU CAN'T DIE... YOU CAN'T... I WON'T BE ALONE AGAIN..." Gaster spoke to his son. He had no idea what he was doing. He was a father now, his son was dying, he didn't even have a name...

Gaster couldn't name him until he make a sound, after all skeletons were named after their fonts. If his son didn't make a sound he wouldn't know what the font was, if he didn't know that then he wouldn't have a name.

Gaster felt sick. He'd never been so scared in his life, even during the war he was never this _terrified._

There was a knock at the door, Alphys had returned with her father. Gaster let them in by opening his door with his magic hands.

Alphys's father looked over at the crib and the child inside it and back up at Gaster. "Um, Sir? Is that...?"

"YES."

"How?"

"I TIRED TO MAKE AN ARTIFICIAL SOUL WITH MY OWN MAGIC AND DNA. I DIDN'T MEAN FOR IT TO BE ALIVE BUT HERE WE ARE."

"My god..." he seemed lost for words, "what are you going to do with them?"

Gaster looked at his child again, "KEEP HIM OF COURSE. TRY TO SAVE HIM." He was trying really hard not to make his voice shake, he couldn't let anyone know how scared he really was, he had an image to keep, although that was hardly important right now.

"Okay, so what would you like me to do, Sir?" He asked Gaster. Gaster had never been so happy that his employees worshipped him and did what he said without question.

"I'M GOING TO NEED FOOD FOR HIM, CAN YOU BRING ME SOME?"

"Yes, Sir."

"AND DON'T TELL ANYONE ABOUT THIS. I'LL ANNOUNCE IT AFTER I KNOW THAT HE'S ALRIGHT."

"Yes, Sir," he took Alphys by the hand and turned away leaving Gaster alone with his son again.

The infant was still just laying limp, his breathing was slow and seemed to be getting slower.

Gaster should really be going to fix The Core but he couldn't leave his son alone. His Followers could handle The Core.

The breathing was getting slower still, his soul seemed dull, Gaster was losing him. He just stood staring at the child, he'd do anything to save him but it seemed the baby was falling down. He simply didn't have enough hope.

He needed a magic transfer.

Gaster didn't think about what he was doing, he acted on instinct. What he was about to do was dangerous but he had no other choice, he couldn't lose the child, not now.

He used his magic to remove his soul, he held it in his hands and none too carefully stuck a needle inside it, removing a large amount of his magic, as much as he could. He had to inject pure magic into his son... He did just that after putting his soul back. He felt weak after removing so much magic but he couldn't pass out yet.

It wasn't working.

In a panic he grabbed the last vial of determination, there was very little left. He had no idea what would happen if he gave a monster determination but with so little... It couldn't make things any worse. It'd probably keep his soul together and then it'd be spent, it wouldn't affect him in a bad way... He wasn't a real monster anyway. That was the logic Gaster was going with as he injected just one drop into his son's soul.

He stood upright again and felt really dizzy, he'd take too much magic from his soul and the world around him was spinning. Gaster's vision began to blur. He collapsed on the ground with a thud.

* * *

Gaster woke up on his desk to the sound of crying. It took him a moment to work out why there was someone crying in his lab and he shot up right away once he worked it out. He didn't even remember passing out. He took note of the bottles of baby formal on his desk and a note that said, "We found you on the floor, I lifted you onto a chair and have left the food on the table."

Gaster could worry about that later, however. Right now his child was crying, he was alive, he was alright enough to cry, although the cry was very quiet.

"LOWER CASE," Gaster stated. That was a surprise, most of his family had been upper case, only his brother Tempus and his Grandmother on his Father's side had been lower case.

He knew he should try to stop the child crying but he wanted to see what font he was first, now that he was making sound. He looked down at the child, listening carefully and he let out a laugh.

Comic Sans.

That was his font. In a morbid sort of way he was glad there were no more skeletons, after all that was a font most didn't really like. He would've probably been bullied if he went to a school with skeletons like Gaster had been for his font. Wingdings was hard to understand and a weird font after all.

Gaster wasn't disappointed by the font, it seemed to fit the child well.

"COMIC SANS GASTER," he said his son's full name aloud and he seemed to react to it. "I GUESS I'LL JUST USE SANS, FOR SHORT." Even though there was no more skeletons to bully him for the font he just wouldn't feel comfortable saying Comic Sans just in case some other monster knew the font wasn't favoured.

He smiled at his son and slowly removed the oxygen mask, he was breathing by himself now. He also removed the drip, his soul was stable now. He noticed but it was slightly deformed, probably a side effect of the determination. He'd have to make sure to get that out of him before it caused more harm but right now he had to calm Sans down.

He had no idea how to do that.

He supposed he should pick him up but he was scared, Sans was so delicate one wrong more could dust him. He'd held him already but he hadn't thought about that, he had acted with adrenaline. He just had to do it. He reached in and picked Sans up by his middle. His head fell back little and Gaster summoned a magic hard to support the head. With the aid of his magic hands he repositioned Sans in his arms so he held him properly.

He couldn't believe he was really holding a babybones, his own child. He was so tiny, his cries so quiet and weak. He tried to shush him, he didn't know why he was crying. Maybe he was hungry?

Gaster didn't want to put him down, he liked holding him but his attempts at calming Sans weren't working. He used his magical hands to grab a bottle of baby formal and read the instructions.

Sans was hungry. Gaster was relived he had found out why he'd been crying. He fed Sans with a magic hand and held him with his own. He summoned another to grab his phone, he didn't know how he'd do all this if he didn't have his magic.

He had lots of missed calls, some from his Followers probably calling to report on the damage. He probably had about thirty missed calls from Grillby and his family, mainly Grillby's mother who worried way too much. Gaster felt bad when he saw that he had seventeen missed calls from Asgore, he must be worried about him.

Gaster had to call him back, he really couldn't procrastinate telling him about his son now that he was born but he still hesitated, he didn't even know how to explain it. He couldn't just call Asgore and say 'HEY, ASGORE, I ACCIDENTALLY MADE A CHILD!'

He just had to do it, Asgore had to know and he had no reason to keep Sans a secret. His magic finger hovered over the call button, he looked down with a small smile at the infant in his arms who was happily drinking the milk.

He jumped a little when he heard his phone ring, Asgore was calling him. Well that forced his hand.

"Gaster! Thank god! Do you know how worried I was? The power's out in Hotland and your Followers are running in a panic to get it back on! And one of your Followers told me that you were having some troubles with something but he wouldn't say what it was and you weren't answering me or Grillby and I-"

"I'M FINE, YOUR MAJESTY, YOU NEEDN'T WORRY," Gaster said, his summoned hand appearing before Asgore on the other end to sign his words to him.

"I do need to worry, you don't take care of yourself. What happened? I certainly hope you didn't do something stupid to save some experiment?"

"... IT WAS NOT AN EXPERIMENT..."

Gaster heard a sigh on the other end of the phone. "You aren't hurt or anything?"

"NO, LIKE I SAID I'M FINE. AT LEAST NOW I AM."

"Now? You mean you weren't alright before?"

"NOT REALLY. I'M NOT INJURED, DON'T WORRY. I WAS SIMPLY IN A PANIC."

"You? Panic? What could possibly make you panic?"

"THAT'S... COMPLICATED. I WAS ON MY WAY TO TALK TO YOU WHEN THE EARTHQUAKE HIT, BUT IT CAUSED SOMETHING BAD TO HAPPEN. I'M NOT GOING TO EXPLAIN THIS OVER THE PHONE, IT'D BE EASIER IF YOU COULD COME TO THE LAB?" Gaster couldn't remove Sans from the lab yet, it was better if he was here so if something happened he'd have everything he needed to save him.

"Come to the lab? Now?"

"IF THAT WOULD BE POSSIBLE, YES."

"You do realise that it's one in the morning?"

"OH," Gaster had a bad habit of losing track of time, especially when he was getting into something but he tried not to bother people at weird times. "SORRY, I DIDN'T NOTICE BUT YOU ARE STILL UP AND YOU CALLED ME."

"Because I was worried about you! If you say that it's really important then I will come now."

Gaster didn't want to bother Asgore and make him come down to the labs at a ridiculous time but he really needed advice, Sans was important. "IT IS PRETTY IMPORTANT BUT IF YOU'RE REALLY TIRED I COULD WAIT UNTIL MORNING... I MEAN, LATER?"

"It's fine, I've been sleeping and waking up all night and I doubt I'll get anymore sleep now. I'm on my way."

"THANK YOU," Gaster said before he hung up. He should get ready.

Sans was finished and had fallen asleep, Gaster was glad for that and he stood up placing Sans back in the crib on his lab coat and he placed his hoodie back over him.

He didn't want Asgore to see Sans until he'd explained everything; he knew how Asgore got around kids, he'd never get to explain if Asgore saw him first but Gaster couldn't just leave the room and leave Sans alone, his cries were so quiet and Gaster was worried he wouldn't hear them from his office, after all he didn't have a baby monitor.

Instead he positioned the crib as close as he could to the door and left the door ajar. He took his bag with his soul research in it to his office and left the office door ajar as well.

He sat at his desk and placed the folders in order before he face planted the desk. "URG, I NEED A CIGARETTE," he groaned. He couldn't go out for one though, he simply waited nervously until Asgore showed up.


	7. Time to Tell Everyone

Asgore was very curious about what Gaster wanted to show him. He always loved seeing his inventions but there was something about the way he spoke on the phone...

He'd sounded, relived? And happy... definitely happy. Gaster wasn't really the kind of person to show emotions and most of the time spoke in a monotone. Whatever made Gaster happy was something worth seeing even at one in the morning.

He walked though the labs in silence, it was a really creepy place when no one was around, it was dark, ominous, quiet and there was a sterile smell, it seemed like a setting out of a horror movie. Asgore tried not to think about it as he made his way to Gaster's office.

Once he got there he noticed the door was ajar, so was the door to Gaster's personal lab, that was odd. Gaster usually locked the door if he wasn't inside and he never left any doors open.

Asgore decided to knock on the office door first as it was closer.

"YOU CAN COME IN, YOUR MAJESTY," Gaster called from inside.

Asgore opened the door and saw Gaster sitting at his desk. The normally well dressed doctor was a mess, he was fidgeting with a cigarette packet, his shirt was wrinkled and the top two buttons were undone, he wasn't wearing his tie, badge or lab coat. The tie and badge were on the floor next to him but he didn't see the lab coat anywhere. The missing lab coat was the weirdest, Gaster always wore it at all times when he was working, something must have happened to it. That made Asgore worry.

Asgore sat in the seat in front of the desk and looked at the folders Gaster had sitting there. It was his soul study research, Asgore had seen some of them before, Gaster had told him all about how he was trying to make an fake human soul but as far as Asgore knew every single attempt ended in failure.

"So, what was it you wanted to show me?" Asgore asked.

"YES, WELL, DO YOU REMEMBER MY ARTIFICIAL SOUL PROJECT?"

"I do, did you succeed this time?"

"SORT OF," Gaster handed him a folder and Asgore opened it to see a photo of a monster's soul in a capsule, it was white as all monster souls were but it was faintly glowing blue and yellow. "I THOUGHT THAT MAYBE IN ORDER TO UNDERSTAND HUMAN SOULS I NEEDED TO STUDY MONSTERS', I TRIED TO MAKE AN ARTIFICIAL MONSTER SOUL BUT MOST OF THEM ENDED IN FAILURE AS WELL."

"But this one?" Asgore asked holding up the picture.

"I FIGURED THAT SINCE SOULS ARE BIOLOGICAL THAT MAYBE IT NEEDED DNA SO I USED MY OWN BONE MARROW AND MAGIC."

Asgore was impressed, this was definitely something huge. "That worked?"

"IT DID. I WAS GOING TO EXPERIMENT ON IT BUT..." Gaster trailed off.

"What happened?"

Gaster was hesitating which make Asgore all the more desperate to find out what Gaster had done. He hadn't seen his friend look so worried since he told him about his people and Asgore just wanted to help him feel better.

Gaster was about to explain when they heard a small cry.

Asgore's eyes went wide. There was no way... "Gaster? Is that a baby crying?"

Gaster shot to his feet. "I'LL BE RIGHT BACK," he said and left the room, leaving Asgore very confused and in shock.

Gaster ran straight to the lab and picked Sans up. He just had to start crying at the worst time, if he had just another minute to explain... Well, there was nothing Gaster could do about it now. Sans seemed to calm down quickly, he probably just wanted attention or found himself alone and got scared. The infant stared up at his father and wriggled to get comfortable, he seemed very content where he was and happy to be held.

Gaster took a deep breath before returning to his office, Asgore was still seated but turned when he heard Gaster enter. Asgore was on his feet as soon as he saw what Gaster was carrying. "Is... is that a baby skeleton?" He asked in disbelief.

"YES, THIS IS COMIC SANS, OR SANS FOR SHORT."

Asgore walked over slowly and looked down at the infant that was wrapped in Gaster's grey hoodie. "Is he...? Um, is his soul the one you made artificially?"

"YES, I NEVER DESIGNED IT TO HAVE A BODY OR EVEN BE ALIVE SO HE'S VERY WEAK. HE JUST STARTED TO FORM A BODY ONE DAY AND WELL, LONG STORY, SHORT, THIS WAS THE RESULT."

"Wow, how is that even possible...?"

"I THINK IT WAS BECAUSE I POURED SO MUCH OF MY OWN MAGIC INTO THE SOUL, I REALLY WANTED IT TO WORK. I WAS TIRED OF THE FAILURES. I ALSO INJECTED A LOT OF MY DNA."

Asgore didn't know what to say, he thought this was amazing. He looked at Sans who was looking back up at him, he appeared to be quite curious and lifted an arm up to Asgore who gave him his pinky finger to hold onto. Although Asgore was so huge and the baby so small that the tiny little hand couldn't really hold onto the finger, he still tried though. "He's very cute," Asgore stated.

Gaster let out a small laugh, "YOU THINK ALL BABIES ARE CUTE."

"True," Asgore managed to pull his eyes away from Sans and he smiled at his friend. "Well, congratulations on becoming a father!"

Gaster laughed awkwardly, it was weird hearing that, especially since just the other day he had planned on putting Sans in an orphanage. "THANK YOU, BUT I'M NOT SURE I'M CUT OUT FOR THIS."

"Oh nonsense! I'm sure you'll be a great father and besides this gives you an excuse to take time off every now and then! Or, well, it stops you making excuses of why you shouldn't!"

Gaster huffed at that, he'd argue but he knew Asgore was right, he'd actually have to take time off now. "I'M NOT READY FOR THIS," he admitted.

"Not ready? Why? Surely it took time for him to develop. But he is wrapped in your hoodie not a blanket... And why didn't you tell me about this sooner?"

"I... I WASN'T GOING TO KEEP HIM."

"What do you mean?" Asgore asked. Surly Gaster wouldn't have planned on killing the child... No, Asgore knew his friend would never to that, especially not when it was a skeleton.

"I WAS GOING TO GIVE HIM TO AN ORPHANAGE." Hearing that certainly relived Asgore. "I FIGURED THAT I COULDN'T CARE FOR A CHILD NOT WITH MY JOB, BUT I GOT... ATTACHED TO HIM. AFTER ALL I'M NO LONGER THE LAST OF MY KIND. I REALLY WANT TO KEEP HIM NOW."

"I see, but still why don't you have blankets or clothes for him? Even if you planned on giving him up you'd still need that."

"LIKE I SAID I WAS GOING TO TELL YOU BEFORE THE EARTHQUAKE, I'D JUST DECIDED TO KEEP HIM AND FIGURED I COULD USE SOME HELP, YOU KNOW FOR ADVICE AND GETTING SUPPLIES. I HAD TIME, SANS WASN'T MEANT TO BE 'BORN' FOR ANOTHER MONTH. THE CAPSULE AND HIS LIFE SUPPORT WERE POWERED BY THE CORE SO WHEN THE POWER WENT OUT... I THOUGHT I LOST HIM."

"Oh my... He seems fine now though... Very small but alright."

Gaster looked down at Sans, he did look fine, he was holding onto Asgore's huge finger as best he could in his small hand. He seemed to be intensely listening to them talk but Gaster was worried about what the determination had done to his soul, he'd have to get it out now that it'd done it's job. He considered telling Asgore about that but decided against it. He didn't want the King to worry.

"YES, I MANAGED TO SAVE HIM BUT HE'S STILL VERY FRAGILE. HE ONLY HAS ONE HP."

Asgore let out a shocked gasp. "Only one? That's... not good..."

"I KNOW, I'LL PROTECT HIM."

"Of course you will, you're his father, that's your job. Now, how about I help you out? Judging by the hoodie I'd say you really don't have anything for him?"

"I'VE MAKE A TEMPORARY CRIB AND I SENT OUT ONE OF MY FOLLOWERS FOR FOOD, OTHER THAN THAT I HAVE NOTHING."

"Right, I'll see what I can do. I think I still have some of Asriel's baby things, we never got around to getting rid of them once he outgrew them. You can have that."

"OH, YOUR MAJESTY YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT."

"I don't mind, it's not like I have any use for them, besides shops aren't open at this time."

Gaster knew Asgore wouldn't back down on that and besides he was kind of desperate right now. "THANK YOU, YOU'RE TOO KIND."

Asgore patted Gaster's shoulder with his free hand. "Don't mention it. Now, I really must ask you something."

Gaster smiled at him knowingly, "YOU WANT TO HOLD HIM, DON'T YOU?"

"Yes," Asgore said quietly.

Gaster wasn't surprised, he knew Asgore would want to hold Sans from the beginning. "JUST BE VERY CAREFUL, LIKE I SAID HE ONLY HAS ONE HP."

"Don't worry, I will be."

Gaster very carefully handed Sans over to Asgore who took him equally as carefully. Gaster couldn't help but laugh at how happy Asgore looked and Sans didn't really seem to care that he'd been handed over to someone other than his father, in fact he seemed to have gotten bored of listening to them and was falling asleep again.

"This really is amazing, Gaster. I really can't believe you did this."

"NEITHER CAN I. I REALLY CAN'T BELIEVE THERE'S ANOTHER SKELETON AND HE'S MY OWN SON."

"I am really happy for you. I take it no one knows about him?"

Gaster nodded, "I WOULD'VE TOLD PEOPLE BEFORE HE WAS BORN BUT..."

"It's alright, Sans is alright, you can tell people now. I'm sure Grillby and his family will be overjoyed to here the news!"

Gaster laughed. "THEY'LL PROBABLY ALL RUSH OVER TO SEE HIM. I HOPE BEING CROWDED BY FIRE ELEMENTALS WON'T MAKE IT TOO HOT FOR HIM."

"I'm sure it'll be fine. You should call them later. They're quite worried about you."

"I KNOW, I WILL."

Sans had now fallen asleep in Asgore arms, that was very fast but he seemed content and Gaster couldn't help but feel so happy, he loved his son.

"You'll have to take a couple of weeks off, you know," Asgore said, "you'll have to get Sans settled in and although I'd be more than happy to babysit for you, there will be times when I'm too busy. You'll have to look for a suitable sitter."

"I KNOW, I'LL TRY TO BRING SANS WITH ME AS MUCH AS I CAN BUT IF I'M DOING ANY KIND OF RISKY EXPERIMENT I CAN'T HAVE HIM AROUND. BUT EVERYTHING'S ON HOLD FOR NOW. I'LL HAVE TO MAKE SURE SANS IS HEALTHY ENOUGH BEFORE I FEEL SAFE TAKING HIM OUT OF THE LAB."

"And then you are taking a holiday. At least two weeks, preferably more. I won't hear any excuses, you are way overdue for a holiday."

"I WILL, I HAVE A LOT OF THINGS TO DO TO MAKE SURE SANS WILL BE ALRIGHT AND LOTS OF THINGS I'LL NEED TO GET."

"Good, now I suppose I better give him back to you. I'm going to get some things for him, I'll be right back."

Asgore handed Sans back to Gaster and left in an exited hurry, leaving Gaster alone with his sleeping son. Gaster carried him back to his lab and placed him back in the crib. He smiled down at his son, feeling even more relived, all his fears about telling Asgore really were pointless, in fact he hadn't seen the King that happy in years. Gaster felt rather silly for being so nervous about it all and he was really happy he had the support of his good friend. Although he really couldn't totally relax yet, he decided that he should probably try to fix the determination problem before it got worse.

Being very gentle Gaster used blue magic on Sans's soul so he could see it. It wasn't good, his soul was more deformed than it was before, it seemed to be slowly melting, it looked really goopy. It didn't have any effect on his body, yet. Gaster didn't know if it would but he wasn't about to find out. This clearly wasn't a good thing, he had to get the determination out but he didn't know how. He couldn't just stick a needle in and extract it that way, it'd take out other things that the soul needed and his son was far too delicate for that.

He'd have to isolate the determination but he couldn't damage the soul in the process.

He let go of Sans's soul with a sigh. He still had a little determination left over, he could study that and hopefully find a way to get it out of his son.

* * *

Asgore returned not long after he left, carrying a small crib and several bags. He noticed that the light in Gaster's office was off so he knocked on the door to the lab.

"COME IN."

Asgore walked into the lab and looked around. It was a mess, he saw the open capsule that Sans had been in, the lid on the floor. He noticed a lot of papers and various equipment scattered over tables. It didn't seem like a good place to keep a child but he knew it was probably just like this because Gaster had panicked, he was usually well organised.

Asgore was glad he'd brought a crib with a mattress, he had wondered what had happened to Gaster's lab coat but he wasn't too surprised to see that Sans was laying on it, still sleeping peacefully.

Gaster was hunched over one of the tables seemly experimenting on some kind of red substance. Asgore sighed and shook his head, he really thought Gaster worked too much.

"Gaster? I brought some things for you."

Gaster stood up and turned slowly. He looked at all the bags Asgore had brought and smiled. "WOW, THAT'S A LOT."

Asgore laughed. "Well you'll need it. Raising a child is not really easy you know. I'll help you as best I can."

They set up the crib as fast as they could and moved Sans into it. Gaster had thought that lifting Sans and moving him into a better crib would've woken him, it didn't, that caused Gaster to check his vitals. Sans was fine, nothing was wrong with him.

Asgore smiled down at the sleeping child. "What a deep sleeper."

Gaster nodded. "I HOPE IT'S NOT A BAD THING."

"It isn't," Asgore reassured. "Sleeping will do no harm. In fact if he's a good sleeper and doesn't wake a lot at night, you'll get a good nights rest as well. Asriel was a loud child, it was really hard to get him to sleep and he woke up and cried all night long."

Gaster just hummed in agreement, really not knowing how to respond to the King who had some tears in his eyes at the thought of his child.

While the King's words did reassure him, Gaster was still worried for his son, he'd probably always would worry about him.

After that they went through everything Asgore had brought for him; toys, blankets, clothes, bibs, bottles, children's books, advice books, Gaster was defiantly set.

Once everything was done King and Doctor sat watching over Sans as Asgore gave his old friends advice and tips until they both fell asleep from exhaustion.

* * *

Gaster was awoken in the late morning by quiet crying and once again he briefly felt confusion. He really had to get used to having a child.

He got up quickly and picked up his son with more confidence this time, after all Asgore had told him how to correctly pick up and hold a baby. Sans didn't stop crying entirely but it didn't seem so urgent now. Still Gaster didn't want his son to be crying so he picked up the formula again. He was most likely hungry.

He really was and stopped crying the moment it was offered to him. Gaster sighed in relief and sat down again.

He looked over to his right so he could see Asgore, who was at his blind side, he was leaning back in the chair, mouth open and snoring. Gaster laughed lightly at his friend and summoned a hand to shake him awake.

"Huh? Oh! Gaster, good morning!"

"GOOD MORNING, YOUR MAJESTY. I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU REALLY SLEPT IN THE LAB."

Asgore stretched and shrugged, "well, I was really tired."

"YOU KNOW THE PLACE STAFF WILL BE IN A PANIC, YES?"

Asgore groaned, "I know, I should probably go home so they don't send out a search party."

"THAT SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD IDEA. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE HELP WITH SANS."

Asgore stood up and walked closer to the baby and smiled again at him, Sans didn't take much notice, he was concentrating on eating. "I don't really want to leave yet."

"ASGORE, SANS WILL STILL BE HERE WHEN YOU COME BACK. YOU SHOULD GO BEFORE THE ROYAL GUARDS CAUSE THE WHOLE UNDERGROUND TO PANIC JUST BECAUSE THEY CAN'T FIND YOU."

"Right, right, I'll be back later. What do you want me to tell them?"

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN? TELL THEM WHATEVER YOU WANT."

"They'll want to know where I was, I'll tell them I was with you but they'll want to know why. Can I tell them about Sans?"

Gaster shrugged. "I'M NOT GOING TO KEEP HIM A SECRET. I JUST DIDN'T WANT ANYONE TO KNOW UNTIL I HAD A CHANCE TO EXPLAIN. I DON'T WANT ANY RUMOURS TO BE SPREAD. BUT AS LONG AS YOU EXPLAIN EVERYTHING I DON'T MIND YOU TELLING PEOPLE. TAKE THE PRINT OUT OF MY RESEARCH IF YOU THINK IT'LL HELP."

Asgore looked happy about that, after all he was dying to tell everyone that his Royal Scientist had, had a child. "Alright, I'll see you later, Dr Gaster," Asgore said as he picked up the print out and turned to go home.

"I'LL SEE YOU LATER, SIRE." Gaster replied.

Left alone with his son again, Gaster had time to think. Things seemed a lot less hectic now that he knew what he was doing.

Sans finished his breakfast and Gaster put him back in the crib before going into his office quickly and grabbing some cereal to eat. As he ate he picked up his phone, he had even more missed calls and texts from Grillby's family.

He really needed to let them know he was alright but he knew that if he told all of them about Sans they'd all come running over and he wasn't up for being crowed by fires.

He went onto the group chat he had with the fire elemental family and spent a message. "I'M ALRIGHT, I WAS JUST VERY BUSY WITH SOMETHING. YOU CAN ALL STOP WORRYING."

It didn't take long for Grillby's mother to begin a long lecture about how Gaster had to contact them right away if something like this happened again. It was _long_, Gaster couldn't be bothered reading it all. Instead he sent a text to Grillby, if he was only going to tell one of them it was Grillby.

"HELLO, GRILLBY. COULD YOU COME TO THE LAB WHEN YOU HAVE TIME?"

A question mark was sent in return.

"I'VE DONE SOMETHING REALLY AMAZING BY ACCIDENT. WHILE TRYING TO MAKE A SOUL, I ACCIDENTALLY MADE A SKELETON BABY WITH MY OWN DNA AND MAGIC."

"What!?" Was the reply.

"I'll be right there, my bar was damaged so I can't open today anyway."

Gaster took a deep breath, he knew Grillby wouldn't be long, not when he told him just like that. It was so much easier now that he had told the King, telling everyone else was a walk in the park now.

* * *

Grillby was really excited to see what Gaster had done and he really wanted more information on how that was even possible. He was, of course, really happy for his friend, he couldn't imagine how Gaster felt, knowing that he was not alone anymore.

Grillby didn't knock on the door, he was too excited so he burst in instead. Normally Gaster would've been mad at his friend for that but he was in a good mood.

Gaster smiled at his old friend and pointed to Sans who had, once again, fallen asleep. "THIS IS SANS," he said.

"_My god, you really did make a baby..." _Grillby signed.

Gaster laughed at the flames amazement. "SIT DOWN AND I'LL EXPLAIN EVERYTHING."

Grillby listened to Gaster's story. He really couldn't believe it, a lot of the science stuff went over his head as always but he was still very happy for Gaster.

Once Gaster had finished his explanation Grillby signed happily, "_congrats, this really is just incredible. We'll have to throw a party for you at my bar once it's fixed."_

Gaster laughed and waved his hands to deny the idea, "OH, GRILLBY, YOU REALLY DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT.''

"_If I don't throw one Mother will, you know that. And it will be much more over the top if she's the one throwing it. She won't even give you a choice."_

Gaster nodded at that, "THAT'S TRUE... ALRIGHT THEN."

A small whine make them both jump, Sans had woken up, he yawned and stretched. He didn't start crying but he looked around for his father and made a happy sounding noise when he spotted him talking with a new person.

"_He's woken up."_ Grillby pointed out.

The two men got up and stood over Sans who stared at the new person, he seemed to really be a curious kid. Gaster couldn't help but wonder about what he was thinking and, if he could speak, what he would say...

"DO YOU WANT TO HOLD HIM?" Gaster offered, Sans didn't seem to mind being held by strangers, he'd seemed very much at home with Asgore. Plus he looked really interested in the fire elemental.

Grillby shook his head. "_Oh no, that's okay, you said he was really fragile, I wouldn't want to drop him or burn him."_

"COME NOW, YOU WON'T BURN HIM AND YOU CERTAINLY WON'T DROP HIM."

_"I don't know, I can't really control my heat that well if I'm really nervous."_

Gaster sighed and touched Grillby's arm, suddenly, making the elemental jump. It didn't burn him though, it was warm, pleasant even. "YOU'RE GOOD. I TRUST YOU."

_"Well, alright..."_ Grillby gave in, he did really want to hold his best friend's child but he was just a little nervous about it.

Gaster picked Sans up and handed him to Grillby who took him as carefully as he could, while he tried his best to cool down. Sans seemed to like the warmth, however, and settled nicely in Grillby's arms.

Grillby looked up from Sans and gave Gaster a wary look. He couldn't really sign with a child in his arms so that meant while holding Sans, he couldn't talk.

Gaster just gave him a reassuring smile. "YOU'RE DOING FINE, SANS SEEMS HAPPY."

Grillby relaxed a little and looked back down at the baby in his arms and gave a happy crackle of his flames.

Sans laughed a little at that and reached up a hand trying to touch Grillby's face but he couldn't quite reach so he began to babel incoherently instead.

"I THINK HE LIKES YOU," Gaster said with a smile, he was happy that his son liked both of his friends.

Grillby smiled at the child and without thinking he spoke for the first time in a long, long, time. "...I'm... glad..." His hoarse and unused voice surprised them both and they exchanged a look of shock.

After a moment of shocked silence Gaster laughed. "WOW, IF ALL WE HAD TO DO TO GET YOU TO TALK AGAIN WAS MAKE YOU HOLD A KID, I WOULD'VE MADE SANS A LONG TIME AGO."

Grillby rolled his eyes. "...Don't... get... used to... it... Once my... hands are... free... I'll go back... to talking... in sign language..." Grillby cleared his throat at the end, he hadn't spoke in so long that it almost hurt to do so and his throat felt dry and over used just by what little he had said.

"WELL, I'LL JUST HAVE YOU HOLD HIM FOR LONGER THEN," Gaster joked. "BUT SERIOUSLY IT'S GOOD TO HEAR YOUR VOICE AGAIN."

After a while Sans fell asleep again and Gaster decided it was time to tell the rest of Grillby's family and his Followers about Sans. He did so in a group call and before long he had people coming to his office to meet Sans. It was all very overwhelming for Gaster and it must be more so for the tiny babybones.

Gaster had then gone online to tell the rest of the Underground, only to find out that Asgore had done that for him, he'd posted some of Gaster's research and pictures and it seemed like everyone was talking about it and congratulating the Royal Scientist, they all seemed happy.

An artificial monster would certainly give hope to people, after all there were other species close to extinction, just none were as close as skeletons. It gave them hope that no other species had to die, if they could have children with only one parent. Of course the method was still experimental but Gaster did have hope that he could one day do it again.

Gaster didn't want to think about that right now. He happily took some new pictures of his sleeping son and posted them online, confirming the news and thanking everyone for their congratulations.


	8. Settling in

"DT, ENTRY NUMBER ONE.

TO MAKE THINGS SIMPLER I'VE DECIDED TO NOW REFER TO DETERMINATION AS DT.

DT IS WHAT KEEPS HUMAN SOULS FROM BREAKING ONCE THE HUMAN IS DECEASED.

BUT WHEN INJECTED INTO A MONSTER SOUL THE EFFECTS ARE...

NOT GOOD.

SANS'S SOUL IS GETTING WORSE.

I DON'T KNOW WHAT'LL HAPPEN TO HIM BUT I CAN'T WAIT AROUND TO SEE."

* * *

Gaster looked over from his desk to his sleeping son, Sans really seemed to sleep a lot. Asgore had assured him it was normal for newborns to sleep a lot but Gaster couldn't help but feel like Sans was sleeping too much. He only ever seemed cry when he was hungry and while he did seem rather observant when he was awake, he was asleep about 90 percent of the time.

Gaster tried not to worry.

Gaster hoped it was the DT and that removing it would make Sans more active.

Gaster hoped it wasn't his low stats.

He turned back to his desk and began to run tests on the DT.

* * *

"DT, ENTRY NUMBER TWO.

DT IS TRULY FASCINATING.

I WOULD BE LYING IF I SAID I DIDN'T WANT TO KNOW WHAT IT'D DO TO A MONSTER IF I LEFT IT.

BUT I WON'T BE DOING THAT.

SANS IS **NOT** AN EXPERIMENT OR A TOOL.

I HAVE A HYPOTHESIS, HOWEVER;

IT'LL MELT THE WHOLE BODY.

MAY EVEN LEAD TO DEATH IF THE SOUL MELTS TOO MUCH.

I REALLY CAN'T WASTE TIME."

* * *

Sans was three weeks old. Asgore was beginning to nag Gaster about taking that holiday, after all Sans was doing fine...

Sans was not doing fine, Gaster just didn't want Asgore to worry so he didn't tell him about the DT problem. Asgore thought Gaster was simply looking into DT to open the barrier.

Sans seemed to be getting weaker and Gaster noticed that his right eye was starting to droop. His body was starting to melt, slowly. Gaster knew that he had to hurry so he skipped the testing of his machine's prototype. If he waited much longer it'd be too late. The DT Extractor prototype was pretty small. If he planned to use it on other things he'd have to make the next one bigger but for now he had no choice. He didn't like using an untested prototype on his son but he was scared and didn't want to lose him.

Sans was awake and staring at the machine, he didn't look scared but Gaster didn't know how he'd react once it was attached to him and switched on. He wished Sans was still asleep, then he might not be aware of what was happening to him. Gaster took at deep breath and touched his son's skull, lightly stroking it, his skull felt sticky, he really was slowly melting. Gaster was just glad he'd only used a drop, without a doubt if he'd used more then the melting process would be much faster.

"PLEASE, DON'T BE SCARED SANS, I'M DOING THIS TO SAVE YOU, NOT TO HURT YOU..." Gaster said to his child, he doubted he could really understand him but maybe his voice would be calming for him. He attached the DT extractor to Sans's soul and strapped down his arms to stop him from pulling it out. He did it as quickly as he could. Sans looked up at him as he did so, now with fear in his eyes but he didn't cry, however, his eyes began to glow, flashing between blue and yellow.

"IT'S ALRIGHT, THIS WILL HELP YOU," Gaster tried to sound as calm and as gentle as he could, he pet his son's head once again before walking over to the controls on the other side of the room.

It was when he switched the machine on Sans started to cry, much louder than he had before. The crying broke Gaster's heart, his son was scared and possibly hurting. It was almost enough to make him shut the machine off. Almost. He couldn't, it was better that Sans be scared for a little bit, than dead, he just hoped it wasn't hurting him. Gaster wished he could be closer to Sans so he could try to comfort him but he had to stay a certain distance away for his own safety.

It was working, slowly but it was working. He saw the DT begin to fill the test tube and his son's eye began to slowly move back into it's proper shape. Sans was still crying, sounding more and more fearful each second. His eyes glowing brighter, if he was old enough to use magic then he'd probably be attacking the extractor.

Gaster saw that no more DT was coming out of the machine, the sample that came out looked to be pure so it didn't take any of Sans's magic and Sans looked normal again. He turned off the machine and went running to his son's side, removing him from the DT Extractor and checking his soul before picking him up and hugging him. He was alright, his soul was a normal shape and his HP hadn't dropped. He was still crying but Gaster held him close and rocked him, doing everything to calm him down.

"I'M SORRY, I'M SO SORRY, SANS. I'LL NEVER DO ANYTHING LIKE THAT AGAIN, I SWEAR IT. YOU'RE OKAY, YOU ARE OKAY. I'VE GOT YOU."

Gaster let out the tears now that his son was alright again. Sans would be alright, he'd grow up like a normal kid and Gaster would do anything to keep him safe. He could relax now, knowing that Sans wasn't going to dust and leave him alone again.

One of his tears fell from his face and dripped down onto Sans's. Sans opened his eyes, the glow fading and stopped crying with a sniff as he looked up and saw his father was now crying. Sans didn't want his father to be sad. He reached up with both arms, Gaster was holding Sans's rather close to his face so Sans managed to grab his glasses and pull them off.

"H-HEY!" Gaster sniffed and looked down at his son who was waving his glasses around.

"gah!" Sans called out followed by more babbling. Gaster couldn't help but laugh a little.

"OH, SANS, WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH YOU?"

Seeing as how Sans had stopped crying, Gaster put him back down and gently pried his glasses out of Sans's hands before he broke them and he put them back on. Luckily this didn't cause Sans to start crying again. Gaster smiled at Sans, wiped his eyes and turned back to his desk.

* * *

"DT, ENTRY NUMBER THREE.

THE DT EXTRACTOR PROTOTYPE WAS A HUGE SUCCESS.

ALL DT WAS TAKEN OUT OF SANS, HE WILL BE ALRIGHT.

I'LL WAIT A COUPLE OF DAYS TO MAKE SURE HIS HP IS STABLE, THEN I'LL TAKE A MUCH NEEDED HOLIDAY.

I'LL WORK ON IMPROVING THE DT EXTRACTOR WHEN I'M BACK.

THEN I'LL BE ABLE TO GAIN MUCH MORE DT TO EXPERIMENT WITH.

I'LL HAVE TO BE CAREFUL NOT TO TAKE TOO MUCH FROM THE HUMAN SOULS.

AFTER ALL DT IS WHAT KEEPS THEM FROM BREAKING."

* * *

Gaster spun and rolled his seat over to Sans, too tired to actually stand and walk over. He looked down at Sans who was still awake and staring up at him, he reached up to Gaster again once he was closer and with a sigh Gaster reached in and gave Sans his finger, who grabbed it with both hands and just held on. Gaster smiled down at Sans, he was happy, everything was alright. Now he needed to take his holiday. Using his magic hands Gaster brought his phone over to him and he called Asgore.

"HELLO, SIRE."

"Howdy, Gaster! I do hope you're calling to say you are finally taking that holiday!"

"I AM, STARTING MONDAY, I'LL TAKE THE HOLIDAY."

"Good to hear, now you are not allowed to come to the lab for at least three weeks!"

"...YOU SAID TWO BEFORE..."

"I've changed my mind, Gaster you need to relax a bit and spend time with your son. Grillby and I have already gotten everything set up in your house. You should just relax."

Gaster didn't like it and he would've argued but he knew that now he had Sans he really couldn't skip out on breaks, he had to do what was best for his son.

"VERY WELL. STARTING MONDAY, I'LL TAKE THREE WEEKS."

"Excellent! How is Sans doing anyway?"

Gaster smiled down at Sans who was falling asleep once again but still held his father's finger tightly. "HE'S DOING GREAT, STILL SLEEPING A LOT BUT HE SEEMS HAPPY."

"That's wonderful. I'll come visit you two at your home in Snowdin on Monday."

"...YOU DON'T HAVE TO."

"I want to."

Gaster knew he did, he was surprised Asgore hadn't shown up a lot more but he was the King and therefore very busy but he knew that Asgore was going to be a big part of Sans's life... He wondered briefly if Sans would grow up calling the King 'Uncle Asgore' much like how Asriel had called him 'Uncle Gaster.'

"WELL, I GUESS I'LL SEE YOU THEN," Gaster told his friend. "I REALLY NEED TO GO NOW YOUR MAJESTY, I HAVE LOTS TO DO BEFORE I GO ON HOLIDAY. EXPERIMENTS TO FINISH UP, A TO DO LIST FOR MY FOLLOWERS."

"Of course, I also need to get going. I have a meeting in half an hour. Take care of yourself, don't stress too much now."

"I WON'T, TALK TO YOU LATER."

"Yes, bye."

They hung up. Gaster looked around his lab, he needed to tidy up.

* * *

Sunday came all too fast. Gaster didn't want to leave on holiday yet, there was still so much to do but there was always so much to do so once he finished up fixing some code for The Core and handing his reports and to do lists to his Followers, he left early. It was a long walk to Snowdin after all and Gaster had to carry his infant son all the way there.

He made sure to pack everything he needed to take with him, mainly food and blankets for Sans. He'd already bought another crib for his home, he'd ordered it online and Grillby had set it up for him once his bar was closed for the night. He'd also bought a lot of other things for his home as well so almost everything Asgore had given him could stay in the lab, after all if Gaster was going to bring Sans to work with him then he'd need that stuff and he didn't want to carry it all back and fourth.

He was a little worried about taking Sans to Snowdin as the temperatures of Hotland and Snowdin were vastly different and Sans had never left Hotland. He hoped that it would not be too cold for him but he figured he'd be fine after all he was a skeleton, he didn't have skin or organs so the huge difference in temperature wouldn't do him any harm. Although it might be a little uncomfortable for him.

He walked as fast as he could, he wanted to get home quickly and it wasn't long before he was in Waterfall from here it'd only get colder so he stopped to wrap Sans in another blanket.

Sans had been sleeping when Gaster had left but he woke up while they were still in Hotland. Gaster had thought that he'd fall asleep again but he didn't. He seemed very interested in his new surroundings after all it was very different inside the lab and Sans seemed to be even more interested in his surroundings the more Gaster walked.

It all seemed new and exciting to Sans, who had only ever known the inside of the labs for the whole month he'd been living. Gaster was happy that his son was finally being a little more active, he was looking around happily and occasionally babbling. Gaster really couldn't wait until Sans was old enough to talk and explore, he really wanted to teach his son. He felt it would be easy; after all he was a genius and therefore his son must be one to and Sans really did seem to absorb everything around him, he was keen to learn.

Before long they were in Snowdin, Gaster had added another blanket but Sans still shivered slightly so Gaster rushed into his house and turned on the heating, hoping to keep Sans comfortable.

Going into his own room, Gaster found the crib, he had told Grillby to put it in the spare room since he had baby monitors now, Sans could have his own room but Gaster was too tired to move it now. He placed Sans down in the crib, he didn't seem to want to sleep and was still looking around with interest. Gaster had no idea how to put a baby to sleep after all he had no trouble with him, in fact it was more of a pain to get him to do something.

He figured it wasn't a problem, Sans may be wide awake but he wasn't making any noise and seemed happy enough where he was so Gaster left him and changed quickly into his pajamas, it was still fairly early in the evening but Gaster was really really tired. All the work and stress seemed to have caught up to him now that he was home and in his own room. He partially face planted into his bed and was asleep in seconds.

* * *

The next few days went by quickly, Gaster didn't really know just how busy he'd be when he took the holiday but there was so much to do. He started by baby proofing the house that was easy enough and didn't take him too long since his friends had done most of it. His next job was a little trickier, finding a babysitter for when he, Asgore or Grillby couldn't watch Sans after all, all three men were busy people.

That job was difficult, he had to find someone he could trust. After all Sans was so fragile, he wasn't going to just let anyone look after him but he was beginning to think that maybe his standards were too high. He was offering a lot of money for the job, he was the Royal Scientist so therefore he was rich. He figured that if he wanted the job done right he'd have to pay a lot so there was incentive for them to actually watch Sans and not to sit around and watch TV. But the work wasn't regular, maybe that was what was putting people off... He should offer more money! That was sure to help the lack of regular hours.

People were just put off by the pressure of watching the Royal Scientist's delicate son. If something were to happen to him, well not only would they have the Royal Scientist's anger to deal with but also a ruined reputation, they'd never get work again.

Eventually Gaster found someone who would be perfect, a sweat old bunny lady. She was retired and bored so wasn't really afraid of a potentially ruined reputation and lack of hours, plus she had a lot of experience in dealing with kids.

That was out of the way and Gaster was happy about that, it'd been quite stressful, especially with all his neighbours, Asgore, Grillby and some other monsters Gaster kind of knew coming to visit. Gaster had liked his popularity, he was a great person and he knew it and he loved it when people told him so. He was bringing hope to the people and they loved him for it but for once it was all a little overwhelming. So many of his friends and fans wanted to meet Sans and congratulate him in person. It was good to feel loved by so many people but he really did just want some time to himself. Still he didn't turn people away, he did like the praise and he didn't want people to think he was an asshole and they would think that if he just slammed the door in their faces like he was tempted to do. So he invited them in with a forced smile, hoping they'd leave quickly.

After the first week things slowed down and Gaster had less visitors. He was happy to finally have some time to relax, however he quickly found himself bored. Sans was a very easy kid to look after, he slept most of the time and the only times he cried was when he was hungry. Although he seemed very curious he never really seemed to have the desire to investigate or do anything at all, he seemed more than happy to just stare at whatever caught his interest until he worked it out, then he'd find something else to stare at or fall asleep.

Gaster was glad Sans was so easy to care for, at first he was worried about his lack of activity but he eventually figured he was just lazy. That was fine with him, as long as he didn't just laze his life away and stayed healthy. After all, if he did nothing but lay around, he couldn't get hurt.

Unlike his son, Gaster liked to do things, just laying around the house watching TV was so boring to him, he wanted to go back to work, he wanted to make himself useful but he'd promised the King he'd take a full three weeks and he was only half way though that. He didn't want Asgore to worry about him or nag him so he had no choice but to find something else to do that wasn't work.

But he just didn't know what to do. Normally when Asgore pushed him into taking a holiday he was only away for a couple of days, a week at most and he spent his time at Grillby's, which ended up with one very drunk Gaster. He couldn't do that with a child to watch. There really was nothing the skeleton wanted to do, he needed a hobby.

He eventually got way too bored sitting at home, two weeks weren't even up yet. He had to find a way to entertain himself so he decided to go for a walk. He made sure to wrap Sans up with enough blankets and he took some food for them both since he didn't know how long they'd be out for.

Sans was once again wide awake and looking around intensely once Gaster left Snowdin Town, it was the first time he'd seen Snowdin Forest after all. Gaster couldn't help but find the look of intense concentration on his baby's face to be adorable. He could already tell that his son was smart.

Gaster found getting out of the house to be rather relaxing, he let himself get lost in his own mind as he watched what little nature that there was in the Underground. He missed the surface, with the wind and the rain and the sun and the stars, he wanted Sans to see it, he'd probably be very interested in seeing it too. That thought just made him want to work harder, he had to show Sans the surface one day. He wanted to show him his old home even if it was just rubble now or more likely humans had built on top of it. He wondered if there was anything at all left of his people, he doubted it, any items were probably burned. Every skeleton was killed so he didn't see why anything would be saved, anything left of his culture was probably burned to ash. That really hurt but losing his family hurt more, they didn't even get a funeral...

He shook his head, that line of thought was only making him more and more depressed. There was still hope to get out; Asgore would get seven souls. There was still hope for his kind; he had Sans. There was hope.

Gaster kept walking though the forest, he didn't really think about where he was going, it didn't really matter, he wouldn't get lost and he liked the peacefulness, although there was the Dog Squad and a couple of sentries patrolling for humans. None of them stopped to talk to him for more than a, "Hello, Doctor!" or some very small, small talk.

Eventually Gaster found himself approaching The Ruins, he hadn't been there since Asriel was little. He knew however that this was were the three fallen humans had come from so it probably wasn't the safest place to bring his six week old son but he knew the chances of there being a human were low and he was confident in his ability to fight and kill a human even while carrying Sans in his arms, although, he probably should try to place him somewhere safe before engaging.

He stood in front of the door, he knew it was locked and could only be opened from the inside so he didn't expect to get in but he still just stared at the door, as did Sans.

He didn't know why but Toriel suddenly popped into his mind, he missed her as well. He truly didn't know what had happened to her, she just disappeared. There were of course rumours that she had taken her own life but Gaster didn't believe them for a second, she was distraught by the deaths for her children and her ex-husband's actions but she wouldn't kill herself. She was most likely hiding in the ruins, trying to protect any fallen humans.

Gaster sighed, there was no way he'd be able to see her, that was just a dumb fantasy. He knew that no matter how much he wanted to tell her about his child, he couldn't, he'd never see her again.

Sans yawned and Gaster looked down at him. He did look really tired, Gaster figured that he should go home and let Sans sleep so with one last look at the door he turned to leave.

Then he heard something.

It wasn't loud but it sounded like a sigh and a thud of someone sitting down on a hard floor. The sounds had come from the other side of the door. Gaster didn't really think as he turned around and walked closer to it and let go of Sans with one arm, making sure he still had a good hold of him. He knocked on the door and spoke as clearly as he could, "HELLO? IS ANYONE THERE?" He knew that whoever was there couldn't understand him unless they could see him sign and he couldn't get his magic to show through the door but it was worth a shot. If it was the ex-Queen then she'd recognise his voice and maybe let him in.

He heard a gasp from the other side, a woman's voice.

"...TORIEL? IS THAT YOU?"

There was no reply. Even if it was Toriel, Gaster figured she wouldn't come out since she had no way to know if Asgore was with him or not. Besides Gaster didn't even know if she'd want to see him, he had sided more with Asgore than he had Toriel despite his best efforts to stay neutral in their fight.

The silence was deafening. Gaster slowly shook his head, he got his hopes up for nothing. Just as he was about to leave for real this time, Sans called out, "goo!"

Another gasp was heard from the other side of the door.

Sans began to babble. Gaster had no idea why, maybe he didn't like the silence or wanted to know what was going on but he continued making sounds.

"Gaster?"

He jumped slightly at the sound of Toriel's voice but that didn't stop Sans's babbling, he seemed unaware.

"Is that a baby?"

Gaster couldn't answer the question without a way to sign to her but he still answered hoping that she had picked up some of his font. "YES."

The door opened and Toriel stood looking down at the child in Gaster's arms. He looked up at her and gave an awkward laugh, "UM... THIS IS SANS..." He said as he signed with his magic hands.


	9. Life

Toriel blinked a few times in disbelief, she couldn't believe what she was seeing and had a lot of questions for her old friend. She stepped to the side and gestured for Gaster to come in. He did, walking inside The Ruins watching his feet so as not to trip on any fallen rocks. To his surprise there were none, Toriel had cleaned up well.

The two of them looked at each other, neither of them knowing what to say. Sans stared at Toriel with interest and seemed to be very curious, his babbling getting quieter but he didn't stop.

Toriel pulled her eyes away from Gaster and looked at the infant in Gaster's arms. She just couldn't believe it, she didn't know how this could happen; Gaster was the last skeleton, how could he have a child? Especially a pure blood skeleton, if Gaster married it would be to another type of monster and any child would take features of the other monster but this child had no other monsters' features, he looked like a normal skeleton. Besides Toriel couldn't see Gaster marrying, he worked too much to go out and meet people. Still, she thought the child was adorable and it took everything she had not to coo and fuss at him. She sighed and looked back at Gaster, she didn't know what to say to her old friend, it'd been so long...

"Would you like a cup of tea?" Toriel eventually asked, ignoring the very awkward atmosphere that surrounded them. "I make a cinnamon-butterscotch pie yesterday and have a lot left over."

"THAT WOULD BE LOVELY," Gaster answered. He had no idea how this would go and he hated how awkward things were. Just what was he meant to say to her? Not only would he have to explain Sans but surely she'd want to know what happened to the two fallen humans that Asgore had killed. He had no idea how she'd react once he told her that he wouldn't have Sans if it were not for the research and experiments he'd done on the human souls.

They walked in awkward silence all the way into Toriel's kitchen, where she made tea and cut two slices of pie. Gaster had nowhere to put Sans but sat down at the table anyway, still holdings Sans in his arms.

Toriel placed a cup of tea and slice of pie in front of Gaster and then turned to get her own before she sat down opposite him with a sigh.

"So," she began looking Gaster in the eye. "What happened? Where did that child come from? Is... is he your's?"

Gaster nodded, and used a magical hand to pick up the cup. "HE WAS THE RESULT OF AN EXPERIMENT. I DIDN'T MEAN TO MAKE A LIVING BEING, JUST A NON SENTIENT SOUL... HE HAS MY DNA AND MAGIC."

Toriel took a sip of her tea, a frown on her face, it was quite the unbelievable story and Gaster knew he'd have to explain in more detail. Toriel however was rather distracted and she looked like she was trying hold herself back from cooing at Sans, who after looking around was beginning to fall asleep.

"What happened exactly?" She asked him as she set her cup down but she never took her eyes off of Sans.

Gaster wasted no time in telling Toriel the whole truth, he could tell she didn't like how he'd experimented on human souls but she liked his idea of trying to make artificial souls as a way to break the barrier. Although she kept most of her opinions to herself, she didn't want to fight with Gaster and tried to concentrate on the child in front of her, that was the most important thing right now and she was very happy for Gaster. She knew he was trying to find another way and that was enough for her. She'd just have to try harder to protect the next human.

Once Gaster was done not only explaining Sans but also what had been going on outside the ruins, they had both finished their tea and pie and Sans was happily asleep.

Toriel smiled at him as she took the plates and cups away to the sink and came back. She seemed to think for a moment before she spoke again, "well, while I absolutely do not approve of everything you've been up to, I'm very happy for you. Sans really is a miracle. I can't imagine how happy you must be now that there's another skeleton."

Gaster glanced down at Sans, "FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A LONG TIME I AM REALLY HAPPY. I DON'T REALLY THINK I'LL BE A VERY GOOD FATHER BUT I'M GOING TO TRY MY BEST."

"You will be a good father, I can tell that you care very much about him and well, all you can do is your best and that'll be enough."

Gaster gave a half smile and bowed his head, "THANK YOU, YOUR MAJESTY."

"Please Gaster, I am no longer the Queen, you don't have to address me a such. You never really had to in the first place."

"YOU'LL ALWAYS BE THE QUEEN TO ME."

"You're too kind, that's just more proof you'll be a good father. Your son is very cute by the way."

"HE IS. WOULD YOU LIKE TO HOLD HIM?"

Toriel gave an excited gasp and stood up. "I'd love to! If that's okay of course?"

"IT'S FINE AS LONG AS YOU'RE CAREFUL, WHICH I KNOW YOU WILL BE, SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE ALREADY HELD HIM. EVEN GRILLBY, IT GOT HIM TALKING AGAIN, A LITTLE BIT."

Toriel walked over to Gaster as he stood, a big smile on her face at getting to hold the little babybones. She was also happy to hear that Grillby was improving. "That's great news to hear, I've been rather worried about him, good to know he's getting better."

"HE'S GETTING MUCH BETTER. I THINK BEING AROUND KIDS WOULD BE GOOD FOR HIM AND SANS SEEMS TO LIKE HIM TO, WHICH IS GOOD." Gaster began to hand Sans to Toriel as he spoke, the movement woke him up and he blinked up at Toriel and looked over to his father before looking back at the former Queen and closing his eyes again.

"Aww," she said once Sans was in her arms, "he didn't even cry and doesn't seem to mind being handed to a stranger."

"YEAH, HE'S REALLY LAID BACK."

"Yes..." Toriel looked up at Gaster, a smirk on her face. Gaster rolled his eyes, he knew where this was going and as much as he pretended to hate it, it was rather... _Humerus_. "It does seem as though nothing... _Get's under his skin!_ In fact he seems rather _bone_ tired. Hey _tibia_ honest, although he sleeps a lot at least you won't be _bonely_ anymore. I guess everyone should be calling you _Dadster_ now."

Gaster gave a small snort, trying to keep himself from laughing. Sans on the other hand began to giggle and clap his hands at the really bad puns, Causing both of them to look down in surprise at the small child.

"...DID HE JUST LAUGH AT YOUR PUNS?" Gaster asked.

"I think he did... What a smart child, to understand all that when he's not even two mouths old!" Toriel lifted her finger to Sans who took hold of it. "Did you like my puns?" She asked him in baby talk, "did you find them _humerus?"_

This earned another laugh from Sans.

Gaster chuckled lightly, "MY GOD TORI, LOOK AT WHAT YOU'VE STARTED! IF YOU KEEP GOING HE'S GOING TO TURN INTO A PUN MASTER BEFORE HE CAN EVEN TALK!"

Toriel laughed, "I'm so taking that as a challenge!"

Before Gaster could do anything to stop her, she was rolling out skeleton puns as though her life depended on it. Sans seemed to find it all hilarious and he seemed to have forgotten he was about to fall back asleep, he was wide awake and giggling so much. Gaster didn't think it was possible to find puns so funny.

There was no doubt in Gaster's mind that if Sans could talk he would be shooting out the puns just as fast as Toriel was.

The three of them seemed happy. It was as if nothing had happened between the former Queen and Royal Scientist, it was as if they were still friends who hung out all the time. That wasn't the case however as much as Gaster wished it so. He was just glad he had the change to let Toriel meet his son.

Toriel, too was happy to have met the child. She wished she could do more for her friend but she knew she couldn't. As much as she wanted to come back and be apart of Sans's life; be like an aunt to him like Gaster had been an uncle to her son, she had to stay. She'd chosen to exile herself to protect innocent humans and that was her priority. She had no doubt in her mind that Gaster would be a good father and his son would grow up healthy and happy. He wouldn't need her help, he had the help of Asgore and Grillby.

* * *

Eventually it was time to go, Gaster had to get home and put Sans to bed so he could sleep properly and Toriel had to take care of the flowers that grew over Chara's grave. They didn't want to part ways and Toriel knew she'd miss her friend and the child she'd just met but they both had jobs to do. Jobs they couldn't do if Gaster stayed or if Toriel left due to their conflicting interests.

"It was so good to see you, Gaster," Toriel said with a smile. "And it was a pleasure to meet your son." She waved at Sans and booped his 'nose,' making him giggle again.

They were now back at the entrance to the rest of the Underground. Gaster was reluctant to leave, he wished so badly that the Queen could come with him but he knew it was pointless to try to convince her.

"IT WAS LOVELY TO SEE YOU TOO," Gaster tried to smile but he was sad, he knew once he left it was very likely he wouldn't see her again. He was too busy to visit regularly and if he did someone might get suspicious and have him followed, he couldn't risk anyone else finding the Queen. She didn't want to be found, so it was for the best if he just left and never came back.

Toriel hugged him as best she could while Gaster was holding his child. "Take care of yourself, my dear, and take good care of your boy. I know he will grow up to become a great man one day, just like you are."

"THANK YOU, I'LL DO THE BEST I CAN."

With a sad smile on her face Toriel turned away from her friend and began walking back to her home. Tears threatened to spill, she didn't want to stay, she wanted to help her friend but she had a job to do. She had to protect the humans. Maybe one day they'd make it to the surface and Toriel could meet her friend again and be part of his child's life. She felt like she would've loved making jokes with Sans.

There was so much left unsaid by both of them, feelings and fears that they couldn't find the courage to say to each other. It left an empty feeling in them both but they were glad for the meeting.

Gaster pushed the door open with his magic hands and left The Ruins behind as he held Sans close to him. He walked slowly back to his home in Snowdin. A lot on his mind.

"IF ONLY I COULD BREAK THE BARRIER, THEN TORIEL COULD COME BACK," he said aloud. He was beginning to doubt himself, like he couldn't do it, like he wasn't good enough. He felt lost and alone and he felt like he was losing hope.

Sans began to babble again, breaking Gaster's self destructive train of thought. Looking down at his son Gaster let out a small laugh. He couldn't lose hope, he had to look after Sans, he had to make the world a better place for Sans.

Sans was becoming Gaster's hope and he was determined to make him happy and in that moment nothing seemed more important than Sans, not The Core, not the barrier, not the well being of the people, not his desire for revenge on humans. Sans was the most important thing to him.

And Sans always would be.

* * *

"SANS, ENTRY NUMBER ONE.

HE'S GROWING SO FAST.

HE IS REALLY LAZY, TRYING TO GET HIM TO DO ANYTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE.

ASGORE AND GRILLBY THINK THAT'S FUNNY.

THOSE TWO HAVE REALLY TAKEN TO SANS.

LAST WEEK I LEFT GRILLBY TO LOOK AFTER HIM AND FOUND SANS SLEEPING IN HIS CRIB HOLING ONTO GRILLBY'S HAND.

GRILLBY WAS SLEEPING ON THE FLOOR.

I THINK SANS LIKES THE WARMTH.

YESTERDAY I LEFT HIM WITH ASGORE AND WALKED IN ON ASGORE READING TO HIM.

HE WAS HALFWAY THROUGH THE STORY AND SANS WAS FALLING ASLEEP.

I COULDN'T GET SANS BACK FOR ANOTHER TWO HOURS ONCE HE DID FALL ASLEEP BECAUSE ASGORE WAS TOO BUSY FUSSING OVER HIM."

* * *

Gaster had started a personal journal that he wrote in all the time all about little things Sans did. He filled it with pictures and videos as well. He was a really proud father who adored his son more than anything. He may have gone overboard the the number of entries but it made him happy and he wanted to remember all the little things about having a baby. He wanted lots to look back on once Sans had grown up.

* * *

"SANS, ENTRY NUMBER FOUR HUNDRED AND EIGHTY SIX.

TODAY I HAD TO BRIEFLY LEAVE THE LAB TO CHECK UP ON MY FOLLOWERS. I WAS GONE FOR NO LONGER THAN FIVE MINUTES.

WHEN I CAME BACK SANS WAS STANDING UP WHERE I LEFT HIM AND HOLDING SOME OF MY BLUEPRINTS THAT HAD BEEN ON MY DESK.

HE CAN WALK. I HAVE NO IDEA WHEN HE FIRST DID IT BUT HE SEEMS TO BE GOOD AT IT SO HE MOST LIKELY COULD FOR A WHILE.

IT WOULDN'T SURPRISE ME IF HE HID THAT FACT SO HE'D STILL GET CARRIED AROUND, THAT LAZYBONES.

I HAVE NO IDEA HOW HE GOT HOLD OF THE BLUEPRINTS. I HOPE HE DIDN'T CLIMB THE DESK BUT HE'S STILL TOO YOUNG TO USE MAGIC...

I'LL HAVE TO KEEP A CLOSER EYE ON HIM; I CAN'T LET HIM GET HURT.

THE BLUEPRINTS ARE CRUMPLED BUT HE HASN'T TORN THEM.

I THINK HE WANTED TO KNOW WHAT IT WAS.

HE'S TOO YOUNG TO READ THEM BUT I GET THE FEELING HE'S GOING TO BE SUCH A GREAT SCIENTIST ONE DAY.

HE WAS HOLDING THEM UPSIDE DOWN AND WHEN I TOOK IT AWAY FROM HIM, HE CRIED.

SO I SAT HIM ON MY LAP AND SHOWED THEM ALL TO HIM AND EXPLAINED THEM, I THINK HE ENJOYED IT.

EVEN THOUGH I DOUBT HE UNDERSTOOD, HE PROBABLY JUST LIKES THE SOUND OF MY VOICE.

...ALTHOUGH HE DOES UNDERSTAND PUNS SO MAYBE HE DID UNDERSTAND..."

* * *

"SANS, ENTRY NUMBER FOUR HUNDRED AND EIGHTY SEVEN."

It was a video, Gaster set up the camera and walked over and sat on the floor a little bit away from his son. He was in his house in the living room, a day off.

"NOW SANS, COME WALK TO DADDY," Gaster gently encouraged Sans, only to have his son stare at him from where he was sitting on the carpet.

Gaster patted the ground in front of him, "COME ON, I KNOW YOU CAN WALK."

Sans just continued to stare and for a brief second it looked like he was giving his father a dirty look of disgust at the thought of walking when his father could simply come over and pick him up if he wanted him for something.

The next few minutes of the video were of Gaster trying desperately to get Sans to move only to fail.

Gaster got up with a sigh, seemingly giving up but he didn't turn off the camera and simply disappeared into the kitchen and came back with a small bottle of ketchup. Sans's eyes widened at the sight of the bottle and Gaster sat himself back down in the same place.

Sans looked disappointed.

Gaster help up the bottle of ketchup and waved it, Sans let out a small whine and reached out with both hands in a grabby motion. Gaster shook his head and said, "NOW, NOW, SANS MY BOY. IF YOU WANT THE KETCHUP YOU'LL HAVE TO WALK OVER TO ME. I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT."

Sans appeared to think for a moment, you could almost see the gears turning in his mind as he tried to work out how worth it, it was to get up and walk over to his father in exchange of ketchup.

It was worth it. Sans pulled himself up and wobbled a little before he put one foot in front of the other and began to walk towards his father, slowly and wobbly but he was walking and a huge smile appeared on Gaster's face at the sight.

Soon Sans had made it to his father and climbed onto and sat down on his lap. The ketchup still slightly out of his reach but his eye lights were fixed on it. "GOOD JOB, MY BOY!" Gaster laughed, "WELL, HERE'S YOUR REWARD!"

Apparently Gaster didn't hand over the bottle fast enough, before he could lower his arm to hand it over a blue light surrounded it and it was pulled out of his hand and into Sans's.

Gaster let out a surprised gasp, "YOU CAN DO MAGIC ALREADY! THAT'S SO AMAZING! I'M SO PROUD OF YOU!"

Gaster beamed with pride and he hugged his son, who didn't seem to care and was happily drinking the ketchup.

* * *

"SANS, ENTRY NUMBER FOUR HUNDRED AND NINETY THREE.

NOW THAT SANS IS WALKING, HE'S BECOMING A LITTLE BIT OF A TROUBLE MAKER.

WHILE I'M HAPPY THAT HE'S MORE ACTIVE AND VERY PROUD THAT HE CAN USE MAGIC WHILE STILL SO YOUNG, I CAN'T JUST LET HIM RUN AROUND THE LABS GRABBING AT ANYTHING THAT TAKES HIS INTEREST.

NOR CAN I LET HIM STEAL KETCHUP...

I LEFT SANS WITH GRILLBY AGAIN TODAY. WHEN I WENT TO PICK HIM UP, GRILLBY WASN'T AT THE BAR.

I ASKED ONE OF THE REGULARS WERE THEY WERE AND THEY TOLD ME GRILLBY HAD GONE TO MAKE AN ORDER AND HAD OPENED THE FIRE DOOR AND SHOUTED "SANS, NO!"

I FIGURED IF SOMETHING MADE GRILLBY TALK IT MUST BE BIG.

I WENT INTO THE BACK AND FOUND A LOT OF EMPTY KETCHUP BOTTLES ON THE FLOOR AND GRILLBY WAS TRYING TO CLEAN SANS UP.

APPARENTLY THE KETCHUP WAS STORED UP HIGH BUT SANS KNEW WHERE IT WAS AND USED HIS MAGIC TO GET IT.

GRILLBY WAS VERY APOLOGETIC FOR NOT KEEPING A CLOSER EYE ON HIM BUT I ASSURED HIM IT WAS FINE, I KNOW HE WOULD NEVER LEAVE SANS UNATTENDED FOR LONG AND WHEN IT COMES TO KETCHUP SANS IS VERY FAST.

I INSISTED ON PAYING FOR THE KETCHUP SANS DRANK ALTHOUGH GRILLBY SAID I DIDN'T NEED TO.

THE WHOLE THING MADE A VERY FUNNY PHOTO."

* * *

Gaster smiled as he attached the photo to the document; bottles of ketchup on the floor, Sans covered in it looking very proud of himself, sitting by the sink with Grillby, also a little covered in ketchup, trying to clean Sans without getting wet himself.

Gaster decided that once Sans was a teenager this was the picture he'd pull out in front of his friends to embarrass him, after all it came with a very funny story that had to be shared. He also showed the picture and told the story to Asgore who thought it was hilarious.

Gaster was very happy, still stressed and over worked but happy. He had no idea just how much he'd enjoy being a father, he loved Sans more than anything, more than science. No matter how stressed he got all he had to do was look at his son or even a photo of his son and he relaxed. Sans motivated him to work harder, he was beginning to care less and less about revenge and more about getting them out so his boy could see the beauty of the surface. All he wanted was for Sans to be happy.

And so he watched Sans grow with pride as he tried to be the best father he could and he was overjoyed when he finally stated speaking.

Asgore was visiting and Gaster had wanted to show off how Sans could now walk so he sat on the floor and patted the ground.

"COME ON SANS, SHOW UNCLE ASGORE WHAT YOU CAN DO."

Sans frowned at Gaster and sat unmoving where he was.

"SANS, PLEASE?" Gaster tried.

"I don't think he wants to," Asgore said, "he really is very lazy."

Gaster laughed and shook his head. "HE'S VERY LAZY," he echoed and turned back to his son and patted the ground again, "COME ON, JUST ONCE?"

Sans blinked up at Gaster, he looked like he was thinking; he even hummed thoughtfully as well. Then he did the unexpected, "no."

Gaster was shocked to hear that and looked over at Asgore. "DID... DID HE JUST?"

Asgore burst out laughing, "I can't believe it! Is this the first times he's spoken?"

Gaster could only nod as he stared in disbelief at his lazy child.

Asgore was still laughing, "I can't believe his first word is an act of defiance! He's going to be a little rebel."

Gaster chuckled and shook his head, "A LAZY REBEL. COME ON SANS! JUST WALK TO ME."

"no!"

"PLEASE?"

"no!"

Asgore was in hysterics, the defiance was so funny to him. As was Gaster's increasingly flustered state as he tried to get his son to do as he was told, only for each try to end with Sans saying, "no."

Asgore's laughter at the situation probably didn't help much. Sans knew laughter was a positive thing and he was probably happy that he was making the King laugh, even though Gaster was not. It wasn't long before Sans to was laughing at each time he said "no."

Despite the defiance Gaster was very happy his son was beginning to talk and soon more words followed and once Sans was able to speak in sentences he was asking his father all kinds of questions. He was very interested in science and Gaster was more than thrilled about that and happily taught his son.

As much as Gaster wanted to home school Sans he knew that wasn't going to be possible. He didn't have the time to teach him properly and although Sans seemed to very intelligent for his age, he was still just a child and needed a proper education. Not only that but Gaster knew he'd need to interact with other kids, or he'd end up with no social skills, so Gaster sent Sans to school in Snowdin. He felt that was the best choice not only was it close to his home but Gaster was much more popular and famous in New Home, he didn't want other kids to use Sans just so they could say they were friends with the Royal Scientist's kid and expect special treatment. Of course five year olds probably wouldn't think that but the parents might and push their kids to be friends with Sans so they could look good.

Snowdin was a small town and everyone there already knew Gaster personally so Sans could make real friends there. That was Gaster's main reason for sending Sans to public school and not just teaching him himself or hiring a tutor. He wanted Sans to be happy and have lots of friends who thought he was cool because he was and not because he was the son of the Royal Scientist.

And so, Gaster walked Sans to school on his first day. Sans seemed nervous as he held on tightly to his father's hand. Once they were at the entrance Gaster stopped and bend down to his son.

"ALRIGHT SANS, HERE WE ARE," he said with a smile.

Sans looked into the school and back to Gaster, "do i have to?" he asked.

"YES, WE SPOKE ABOUT THIS."

"i don't wanna, i want to stay home."

"SANS, MY BOY, YOU MUST STOP BEING SO LAZY. YOU NEED AN EDUCATION."

"but can't we do it at home?"

"NO. SANS, DON'T YOU WANT TO MAKE FRIENDS?"

Sans looked down at the ground and muttered out, "i don't think anyone will like me."

Gaster signed and put his hand under his son's chin to raise his head. "NOW SANS DON'T SAY THINGS LIKE THAT. YOU ARE SO VERY SMART AND VERY FUNNY, I'M SURE YOU'LL HAVE LOTS OF FRIENDS."

"but you're really cool!" Sans said, "and they'll realise that i'm really lame and not like you at all..."

"I'M GOING TO STOP YOU RIGHT THERE, SANS. YOU ARE COOL, VERY COOL. JUST GO IN THERE AND MAKE SOME PUNS AND I'M SURE BEFORE YOU KNOW IT YOU'LL HAVE LOTS OF FRIENDS. I KNOW YOU'RE NERVOUS BUT YOU'LL BE FINE AND IF, IN THE UNLIKELY EVENT, YOU GET BULLIED WE'LL JUST MOVE SCHOOLS AND YOU WON'T HAVE TO SEE ANY OF THEM AGAIN, OKAY?"

Sans nodded and hugged his father, Gaster wrapped his arms tightly around his child. "ok, i'll try," Sans said once he let go.

"GOOD, NOW YOU BEHAVE, NO PRANKS ON THE TEACHER OR STEALING ANY KETCHUP OR FALLING ASLEEP IN CLASS! AND BE CAREFUL, DON'T HURT YOURSELF! IF ANYTHING HAPPENS YOU HAVE A PHONE WITH MY NUMBER."

Sans laughed a little, "ok, ok, stop fussing, daddy!"

"OH, BUT I HAVE TO FUSS OVER MY LITTLE BABY BOY!" Gaster kissed the top of his skull and Sans rolled his eyes. "YOU'RE GROWING UP SO FAST!"

Once Gaster stopped fussing over Sans, he let him go and Sans walked lazily into the school and waved to Gaster at the door.

Gaster walked to work feeling very proud at how brave his boy was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter changed a lot. I really wasn't happy with the way it turned out at first so I changed it up quite a lot. The way I'm doing this is by writing the whole thing before I uploaded chapter 1 and it's 21 chapters (the whole fic is written but is subject to change and I may add more chapters who knows,) and editing them as I go, although I have gone through the whole thing a few times already. I'm doing it that way because I've had so may fics I started and uploaded as soon as the chapter was done only to lose interest and abandon it and I don't want to do that again. I also tend to get depressed sometimes and lose all motivation and I've decided I don't want a long period of time where I'm not updating so I'm uploading every Sunday, (although the time I upload changes depending on how long it takes me the proof read one final time.)
> 
> I'm saying all this because I've rewritten large parts of this on the Tuesday before I upload so it hasn't been proof read as much as the other chapters so I apologise if this chapter's not as good/has more spelling/grammar mistakes. (I work in retail as a supervisor and it's xmas season so ya know. Busy.) Although I do like it a lot more now.
> 
> I still also feel it might be a little rushed at the end but I have no more ideas for baby!Sans and feel I suck a writing babies/children and I want the plot to keep moving forward instead of just going nowhere with random baby!Sans moments. (Papyrus has to show up at some point lol)
> 
> Anyway sorry for the rant, I'm sure most don't really care lol. And thank you for reading my bad fanfiction haha.


	10. Time for Another

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN SANS HAS TO REPEAT THE YEAR!?" Gaster yelled at the head teacher as he stood from the chair and slammed his hands on the desk. Six year old Sans sat on a chair next to his father looking as though he couldn't care less as he fiddled randomly with a Rubik Cube.

The teacher gulped, he didn't want to be yelled at by the Royal Scientist but someone had to tell him, it was for Sans's own good. "Please, I know this will be hard for you to accept Doctor, but Sans has never gotten past the second question in any assignment, he just falls asleep. It's clearly too hard for him, we can't let him progress if he doesn't understand! It'll only get harder for him!"

"ARE YOU CALLING _MY_ SON, _MY PRECIOUS LITTLE BABY_, STUPID?"

"N-no! Of course not, no child is stupid, he just needs a little extra help."

"HE ABSOLUTELY DOES NOT! IN FACT HE SHOULD BE SKIPPING A YEAR! IT'S SO OBVIOUS THAT HE'S FALLING ASLEEP BECAUSE IT'S TOO EASY, IT'S BORING HIM!"

"dad, come on," Sans spoke up not looking up from the cube, "it's not a big deal."

"IT IS A BIG DEAL!" Gaster turned to his son, he knew he didn't care but he wasn't just going to let Sans waste a whole year just because he was lazy. "I WILL NOT LET _MY SON_ BE HELD BACK!"

"Doctor Gaster, please! We just want to help him."

"HELP HIM? HOW IS THIS HELPING HIM? YOU'RE WASTING HIS TIME AND MINE!"

Gaster glared at the teacher, he hadn't been so angry in a long time. He knew for a fact that his son was a genius, he loved science and maths. Gaster had tested him himself and Sans always got high marks. He knew that Sans was just lazy and wouldn't do anything that didn't interest him, he'd just pull him out of school if he could but Sans had friends and Gaster couldn't take that away from him.

"Look, I get that you want your child to be smart but in reality he's not finishing assignments, not even close to finishing one. We can't just let him go into the next year if he's going to struggle, that's not fair on him."

"HE'S NOT STRUGGLING! YOU ARE JUST STRUGGLING TO GIVE HIM A GOOD ENOUGH CHALLENGE. MY SON IS NOT STUPID, THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE! HE EVEN HELPS ME WITH SOME EXPERIMENTS FROM TIME TO TIME."

The teacher sighed, "I'm sorry, but I'll need to see some kind of proof if I'm going to let him move on."

Gaster smirked, "FINE," he turned to Sans who had gotten bored of fiddling with the Rubik Cube and was now throwing it up in the air and catching it with blue magic. "SANS, YOU STAY HERE AND BE GOOD. I'LL BE RIGHT BACK WITH YOUR TESTS."

"ok."

"I MEAN IT, BE GOOD."

"ok."

"SANS."

"i'll be good."

"OKAY," Gaster glared at the teacher again and ran out of the principle's office and went home as fast as he could.

Running into the spare room and over to a filing cabinet, he pulled out the tests he had made for Sans, he stuffed them into a bag and opened another drawer in the cabinet. He knew that the tests themselves wouldn't be enough to prove that Sans wasn't stupid and was in fact a genius. After all Sans had done them at home, there was no proof that Gaster hadn't helped him with it so he brought out a test he had only just finished writing, Sans could do that at the school and they'd see how smart he really was.

Once he stuffed that into his bag he ran back to the school and burst into the office to find Sans sleeping in the chair he'd left him in and the teacher going through some paper work. Gaster opened his bag and slammed the tests on the desk, waking Sans, who jumped at the sudden noise.

"SORRY, SANS, YOU CAN GO BACK TO SLEEP IF YOU WANT," Gaster said as he stroked his skull and sat back down. Sans yawned and got up to sit in Gaster's lap as he looked at the teacher. Gaster hugged his son as he settled into his lap and smirked at the teacher.

As much as Sans didn't care if he was held back or not he liked the idea of his father proving the teacher wrong, that would be hilarious. Plus he wanted Gaster to be proud of him so he smiled smugly and took the Rubik Cube out of his pocket, this time instead of just messing around with it he began to solve it.

The principle didn't take long to look over the tests and then he looked back at Gaster, "alright, but how do I know you didn't just give him the answers?"

"THERE'S A TEST HE HASN'T DONE YET, I'LL LEAVE THE ROOM AND YOU CAN GIVE HIM THAT TO DO. IT WON'T TAKE LONGER THAN HALF AN HOUR, SHORTER IF HE ACTUALLY TRIES FOR ONCE."

"done!" Sans said happily as he held up the completed Rubik Cube.

"WELL DONE!" Gaster smiled and kissed the top of Sans's skull.

The teacher looked at them with a raised eyebrow. "Very well, let's do this test," he said with a sigh, trying to hide just how impressed he was with how fast Sans had solved the cube.

* * *

Sans laughed with his father as they left the school. The teacher took back what he said after Sans passed the test and agreed that maybe it'd be best if Sans skipped a year instead. That was going to be brought up in a meeting with other teachers and they'd call Gaster once a decision was made but at least Sans no longer had to repeat a year.

"i think we really _tested _that guy's patients," Sans giggled, "he really got _schooled!_ what you did really was a _class _act."

Gaster laughed and shook his head, "THOSE WERE ALL TERRIBLE!" He said although he was still laughing.

Sans shrugged, "i am very _punny!_"

"YOU ARE, I WISH YOU'D PUT AS MUCH EFFORT INTO YOUR SCHOOL WORK AS YOU DO PUNS," Gaster sighed.

"but class is boring!" Sans complained, "and i get sleepy."

"STOP BEING SUCH A _LAZYBONES,_ SANS. YOUR EDUCATION IS IMPORTANT, PROMISE ME YOU'LL DO YOUR ASSIGNMENTS FROM NOW ON."

"but-"

"NO BUTS! THEY SHOULD BE FAIRLY EASY FOR YOU JUST DO THEM QUICKLY THEN YOU CAN SLEEP FOR THE REST OF THE CLASS IF YOU REALLY HAVE TO."

Sans sighed, "ok, i'll try."

"GOOD."

"but not all classes are easy, you know. p.e, art and creative writing are hard!"

"I DON'T EXPECT YOU TO BE GOOD AT EVERYTHING. JUST DO YOUR BEST IN THE ONES YOU STRUGGLE WITH AND DON'T BE AFRAID TO ASK FOR HELP."

Sans nodded and took his father's hand as they began to walk towards their home. "hey, dad?" Sans asked.

"YES?"

"can we go to grillby's for dinner?"

Gaster looked down at his son, "YOU WERE AT GRILLBY'S ALL DAY YESTERDAY."

"please? his food is the best and i like grillby, he's really _cool..._ for a guy made of fire."

Gaster smiled and gave in, he couldn't say no when Sans was looking up at him with cute puppy dog eyes. "ALRIGHT, I SUPPOSE WE CAN. YOU DID SO WELL WITH THE TEST SO YOU DESERVE A TREAT."

"yay!" Sans let go of Gaster's hand and threw his arms in the air before happily running ahead a little.

Gaster laughed lightly at seeing his son just light up and gain energy out of nowhere. "DON'T FALL!" Gaster called as he to sped up so he was close enough to catch him with blue magic should he slip on some ice.

They walked into Grillby's together and up to the bar. Grillby smiled at the two skeletons as Gaster lifted Sans onto a bar stool and sat down himself.

"_Good evening,"_ Grillby signed, "_the usual?"_

Sans nodded, "yep, that'd be cool grillbz"

"SANS, MANNERS."

"right, please?"

Grillby smiled and nodded at Sans then pet his head before going to the back to make their dinner.

Gaster enjoyed his burger with his son, the two of them messing around as they ate and bugged Grillby with fire puns when he wasn't serving other customers. Gaster did have to occasionally tell Sans off when he caught him loosening the lids on the condiments but otherwise that had a good dinner.

Gaster really did love his son very much, he savoured every moment he had with Sans, he spent as much time with him as he could and as Sans got older the more experiments he could help with and the more time they could spend together.

But Sans was growing up so fast, already six years old. Gaster didn't know just how much he'd enjoy being a father but it was the best thing he had ever done. He loved Sans more than anything and... He wanted another child.

But he was scared. Scared that if he repeated the experiment that created Sans, it would fail. Scared that his second child might be weaker than Sans was. Scared that he'd create a child only for them to dust immediately. He couldn't go through that, he was already worrying enough about his firstborn.

Besides he was very busy, he was a single father with a very important job, he had struggled a bit with Sans despite having his best friends to help him. He knew two kids would be much more work but Sans really was a very good child, sure he pulled pranks and clearly didn't pay attention at school but he never disobeyed Gaster. It wasn't like he never did anything bad but the only things Gaster ever really needed to punish Sans for was when he hid whoopee cushions around the house or lab when he had important guests round or when he drank all the ketchup and replaced it with hot sauce. Despite that Sans was rather mature for his age, he could take care of a little sibling and Gaster was sure that Sans would love being a big brother. He was really considering having another kid.

* * *

Gaster sat in his lab, Sans on the floor doing another test he had begged his father to give him. Gaster was looking at his soul research, his notes on the creation of Sans's soul, the notes he had made when Sans was just an experiment, before Gaster realised the soul was alive. He was making changes and adding other notes in pen over a printed version. Sans was never meant to be alive so his soul was weak because Gaster had never meant for it to be strong. He'd correct his formulas so that his second child would hopefully not have the same problems Sans did and Gaster could worry a little less. Gaster smiled at the improved notes and was confident that it would work. Now he just needed to look out the equipment and begin the process of creating another soul. He felt excitement at the thought of it, he really wanted another child to love.

"hey, dad, i'm finished," Sans said looking up from the test.

Gaster turned and smiled at him, "WELL DONE AND SO QUICKLY AS WELL, YOU'RE SO SMART!"

Sans giggled at the praise and stood up to hand Gaster the finished test, "i think this one was a little too easy, they're normally much harder."

Gaster laughed as he took the papers Sans handed him to mark. "WELL I DIDN'T HAVE ONE READY AND YOU PUT ME ON THE SPOT! I THINK YOU MIGHT BE THE ONLY KID IN THE WORLD WHO ACTUALLY ENJOYS EXAMS."

Sans shrugged, "only the ones you give me."

Gaster pulled his son in for a hug and turned back to his desk moving his research aside to replace it with Sans's test. He could take a break from that for now, there was no rush and began to mark the test as Sans crawled onto his lap and fell asleep.

* * *

Gaster had looked out all the necessary equipment and cleaned them, he couldn't believe he was really going to do this but he wanted it more than anything. This time he already told his friends what he was going to do and they all encouraged him to go through with it. He hadn't told Sans yet, however. He didn't want to get his hopes up if the new child were to die due to any kind of compilations. Sans was still a little too young to understand and Gaster didn't want to hype him up to be a big brother only to tell him that it'd failed.

It wasn't going to fail. Gaster wasn't going to let it, this soul was going to be much stronger than Sans had been at this stage and Gaster figured the changes of another earthquake hitting and affecting his unborn child was low and even if the power did go out they now had a back up generator. His second born would be alright.

He extracted his DNA again, not caring that it hurt a bit, it was much too exciting to care about a little pain, and injected it into the empty soul. Then he took a new needle and removed as much of his magic as he could and injected that into the soul as well. He wanted this child to be strong, so he didn't have to worry quite as much about them as he did Sans. He figured that having a strong sibling would be good for Sans, after all Gaster wouldn't be around forever and he wanted someone to protect Sans when he was gone, hopefully after a long and happy life.

There were so many reasons Gaster wanted another child but the main one was simply because he did. He loved Sans so much and he wanted another.

Gaster smiled at the small soul floating in the second tube Sans had been in, already connected to life support and in the magic fluid. This one would go smoother, it had to. Gaster placed his hand to the glass and smiled at the soul that belonged to his second child.

"GROW BIG AND STRONG FOR ME, LITTLE ONE," Gaster said and after a long time staring at it he turned away and set up a security camera to keep a close eye on his child when he wasn't there. He was going to be watching this one much more closely, after all he had missed most of the early stages with Sans because he didn't think he was alive. He'd only checked on his soul once a day. With this child he would most liking going to check the camera all the time and once he was sure they were stable and beginning to create a body he'd tell Sans about them.

* * *

"MY SECOND CHILD, ENTRY NUMBER ONE.

THEY ARE PROGRESSING MUCH FASTER THAN SANS DID.

SANS TOOK FIVE DAYS TO START FORMING A BODY, THIS ONE TOOK THREE.

THEY'RE STRONGER, WHICH IS GOOD.

THERE IS ONE OTHER DIFFERENCE.

SANS WAS A BLUE BLOB AT FIRST, THIS CHILD IS ORANGE, I WONDER WHAT THAT MEANS.

THE ORANGE SOUL WAS BRAVERY. I WONDER IF THAT MEANS THIS CHILD WILL BE BRAVE...

NO MATTER, THEY'RE STABLE SO I THINK IT'S TIME I SHOWED SANS."

* * *

"what is it?" Sans asked as he walked through the labs with his dad, hand in hand.

"YOU'LL SEE ONCE WE GET THERE," Gaster tried to contain his excitement as he spoke. It was so hard not to pick Sans up and run but he didn't want to scare Sans and make him think it was something bad.

"but i wanna know," Sans complained, "is it something cool?"

"OH YES, VERY COOL," Gaster said. He held his son's hand tighter and sped up a little, he wanted to get there was soon as he could. It didn't take long.

Gaster opened the door to the lab his new child was in and walked in with Sans at his side. Sans's eyes widened and he let go of Gaster's hand and ran over to the tube, where the little soul was surrounded by an orange blob.

"wow!" Sans touched the glass, a look of utter amazement on his face and Gaster laughed as he walked over and knelt besides Sans.

"THIS IS YOUR LITTLE SIBLING, YOU'RE GOING TO BE A BIG BROTHER," he told Sans with a smile as he put an arm around him.

Sans torn his gaze away from the soul and looked at Gaster, he was clearly excited. "that's awesome, when will they be born? is it a boy or girl?"

Gaster pulled Sans in for a hug, "WELL IT SHOULD BE NINE MONTHS BUT YOU WERE BORN IN EIGHT, HOPEFULLY THIS WILL GO RIGHT. AS FOR THEIR SEX WE WON'T KNOW THAT FOR A LITTLE WHILE YET... OUT OF CURIOSITY; WHAT WOULD YOU PREFER?"

Sans shrugged, "don't care. you?"

Gaster mirrored Sans shrug, "I DON'T MIND, IT'S JUST AMAZING THAT I CAN HAVE CHILDREN AT ALL."

Sans turned back to the small soul and just stared at it, "i can't wait," he said not looking away.

Gaster laughed and pulled over a couple of chairs for them to sit down on. "WELL YOU CAN HELP ME WATCH OVER THEM UNTIL THEY'RE BORN. YOU CAN STAY HERE FOR AS LONG AS YOU LIKE AS WELL. THEY'RE PERFECTLY SAVE IN THE TUBE, IT'S THICK GLASS SO AS LONG AS YOU DON'T TOUCH THE LIFE SUPPORT MACHINE YOU CAN STAY... ALSO YOU STILL HAVE TO DO YOUR HOMEWORK!"

Sans rolled his eyes as he climbed onto the chair and continued to watch his sibling. "i'll be good, don't worry."

Gaster smiled as he patted his son's skull. "I LOVE YOU," he said.

"love you too, dad, and i love my little brother or sister too!"

Gaster nodded, "I LOVE THEM AS WELL."

Everything was so perfect; Gaster had his lazy genius son and soon was going to have another child, who Gaster knew would be just as great as Sans was. How could any child of the Great Gaster be any less than great themselves?

After an hour Gaster managed to pull himself away from his children, he still had work to do so as much as he wanted to sit with Sans and the little soul, he couldn't. After all another human had fallen, that made four souls now. A human had fallen when Sans was two, a dark blue soul, integrity. Gaster had studied it like he had all others but didn't find anything new. There was still no breakthroughs.

Gaster left Sans in the room and went to the lab next door. The fourth soul was there in a capsule, a purple one, Gaster had already found out that this soul's trait was perseverance. He had a limited time to study the soul as Asgore wanted it back so it could be safely stored with the others, so Gaster had to work fast. He wished he could let Sans help but he didn't know how he'd explain it all to a six year old. The science wasn't what he would struggle to explain, Sans was a natural scientist after all. What he couldn't explain was the moral side of it, his son was very smart and curious, he'd ask where it came from and Gaster didn't know how he'd answer that. Sans was still too young, too innocent.

He'd bare the burden himself. He'd research the souls alone so no one else had to suffer from the guilt of experimenting on a real human soul and he would even bare the burden of killing the human children if Asgore let him. He had to protect his own children from that, they could never know their father was an accomplice in the murder of human children, even though he wasn't doing this for revenge anymore, he was doing it for them.


	11. PAPYRUS

Sans was very excited. He watched the soul everyday and Gaster found it hard to pull Sans away from them when he needed to eat or sleep or go to school. Sans really couldn't wait for his little sibling to be born. Gaster had even ended up with several photos of Sans sleeping next to the capsule at various stages in the infant's development. He could tell that Sans was going to be a very protective brother and he knew that Sans definitely loved them a whole lot.

The child's development was going smoothly. Gaster discovered he was going to have another son and Sans was excited to know he'd have a little brother. He was definitely going to be stronger than Sans and Gaster was happy that Sans's weakness wasn't because he wasn't born the usual way. This child had move HP than Sans already and he was bigger than what Sans had been at that point too.

Everything went so smoothly and before Gaster knew it, it was time of his second child to be 'born.' It was much less panicked and Gaster got him out with no problems. Sans had insisted on watching, Gaster was worried that the now seven year old Sans would get in the way but he stayed to the side and watched with a huge smile on his face. He even asked a few questions.

As Gaster checked over his newborn son, making sure he was healthy, Sans came over and looked down at him. Gaster laughed lightly as Sans reached in slowly and poked his brother's cheekbone with enough force to move his head to the side.

"CAREFUL NOW, SANS," Gaster warned lightly.

"you said that he's stronger than me."

"WHEN YOU WERE THIS AGE, YES, BUT HE'S STILL JUST A BABY. DON'T BE TOO ROUGH."

The babybones wriggled a little when Sans moved away, he was yet to cry but Gaster wasn't too worried since he was awake and staring at his father and brother. He reached up a hand towards Sans and Sans looked to Gaster questionably.

Gaster smiled at his eldest. "I THINK HE LIKES YOU. PROBABLY BECAUSE YOU SPENT SO MUCH TIME WITH HIM WHEN HE WAS IN THE TUBE."

Sans grinned and carefully lowered his hand back into the crib and his brother took hold of his finger. Sans giggled, "he's so cool."

The infant squirmed a little, clearly already more active than his brother and made a sound much like laughter, "NYEH HEH HEH!"

Sans jumped at the sudden noise pulling away sharply, the sudden movement then causing the newborn to cry. "oh no! i'm sorry!" Sans lent back in to try to calm him.

Gaster took over, picking up the baby and shushing him, the baby stopped crying quickly and settled into his father's arms. Gaster was happy that he had made a sound so quickly as now he knew that his second son was an upper case like Gaster himself, making Sans the odd one out but more importantly the child now had a name.

Gaster hugged his youngest close and smiled at his oldest, "HIS NAME'S PAPYRUS."

"papyrus..." Sans echoed and gave his finger back to Papyrus to hold onto, "i love you, papyrus."

Gaster smiled at Papyrus, he was nowhere near breaking the barrier, there were only three more souls needed, he was running out of time. He should be desperate, he should be working 24/7 but he was happy; he now had two perfect children. He had a family again and he found thinking of anything other than his sons impossible right now.

"DO YOU WANT TO HOLD HIM?" Gaster asked, looked away from Papyrus again and back at Sans.

Sans gasped, the lights in his eyes shinning bright like stars. "can i?" He asked.

"OF COURSE, GO SIT DOWN."

Sans did as he was told and sat in his father's chair, Papyrus whined a little at seeing his brother move away but seemed to be relived when he saw that Sans didn't leave the room. Gaster let him get comfortable before coming over and teaching Sans how to hold an infant before handing Papyrus over. Sans was very careful and listened to his father's instructions and held Papyrus close to him. Papyrus seemed very content in Sans's arms and reached up to grab at his brother's face.

Gaster, seeing his sons together, felt very proud, proud of Sans for being such a good brother already, proud for Papyrus because he was so cute and strong. He was proud of himself for creating such perfect children. Now that he truly knew how to create children alone he could have more, although dealing with one baby at a time was probably a good idea, he couldn't spend all his time looking after kids but there was nothing to stop him having another once Papyrus was older.

Right now he had to concentrate on the two he already had. They were happy where they were for now, Sans was talking to Papyrus about all the things they'd do together when Papyrus was older. Gaster took out his camera and took a photo of his sons, Sans was still looking at Papyrus but looked up at his father when he saw the flash.

"SMILE FOR THE CAMERA, SANS," Gaster said.

Sans rolled his eyes and gave Gaster a huge grin as Gaster took another photo.

"you sure like taking photos of us," Sans commented.

"YOU GROW UP SO FAST SO I HAVE TO!" Gaster exclaimed, "WE'LL ALL LOOK BACK ON THESE TOGETHER ONCE YOU TWO ARE ADULTS AND YOU'LL BE GLAD THAT I DID."

Sans shrugged, the movement a little awkward with Papyrus in his arms and went back to cooing at his new brother.

Now that, that was out of the way Gaster decided to call Asgore, Grillby and the latter's family; they'd wanted to know once the child was born and Gaster was excited to share the news.

He grinned to himself, a thought coming into his mind, "HEY, SANS I'M GOING TO CALL ASGORE AND GRILLBY, WANT TO BET ON WHO YOU THINK WILL ARRIVE FIRST?"

Sans laughed, "asgore, obviously, he's closer and more excited than grillbz."

"YEAH BUT HE'S BUSIER TODAY THAN GRILLBY IS."

Sans shrugged again, "i still say asgore."

* * *

Asgore arrived as fast as he could, bursting into the room and looking at Gaster pleadingly, "where's the baby?"

Sans, still sitting with his baby brother in his arms, looked up at his father, "i win."

Asgore looked over to Sans with a confused frown, "you win?"

"WE HAD A BET ON WHO WOULD ARRIVE FIRST, YOU OR GRILLBY. SANS WON."

"Oh," Asgore said and let out a laugh.

Gaster, rolled his eyes, "ANYWAY, THIS IS PAPYRUS," he gestured to the child in Sans's arms.

Asgore was over in seconds as he looked down at the new Gaster. Papyrus, much like Sans was very curious and stared up at the new person with great interest and a few seconds of what looked like intense thought he raised his arms up to Asgore as though he wanted Asgore to hold him, however Asgore was hesitant to take him away from his brother.

Sans didn't seem to mind and smiled up at the King. "you can take him, my arms are getting tired."

Asgore was more than happy to do just that and he carefully lifted Papyrus out of San's arms. The babybones seemed very happy with this as he laughed and wriggled happily getting comfortable in Asgore's much larger arms and then reaching up to grab at his beard.

"Ow ouch!" Asgore carefully took Papyrus's little hand and pried his beard free, "my, you're much more active than your brother."

Gaster came over to stand next to Asgore and gave Papyrus a rattle to occupy his hands so he wouldn't decide Asgore's beard was a suitable toy again. Papyrus waved the rattle around making a large amount of noise as his giggles mixed with the sound of the toy.

"HE'S GOING TO BE MUCH MORE WORK THAN SANS WAS. HOPEFULLY HAVING PAPYRUS WILL MAKE SANS MORE ACTIVE AND LESS LAZY. HE NEVER DOES ANYTHING!"

"i am right here," Sans said, he'd made no effort to get up from the chair and had actually pulled his legs to his chest and curled up in it.

Gaster sighed, "LEGS DOWN, SANS. SIT PROPERLY. YOU'RE GETTING THE CHAIR DIRTY."

Sans responded by kicking his already untied trainers off. "won't get dirty now, think of that as an act of _chair-ity._" he replied.

Gaster couldn't stop himself from laughing at the pun, the act made it difficult to then turn around and scold Sans for being a smart-ass. Before he could react past laughing, however, Asgore spoke, "I think Papyrus just cringed at that joke."

That got Sans's attention and he got out of the chair, "really? isn't he a little too young to understand puns?"

Gaster shrugged, "NEITHER OF YOU ARE NORMAL, THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS HE PROBABLY SHOULDN'T BE ABLE DO TO RIGHT NOW BUT CAN; I GUESS IT'S BECAUSE YOU HAVE MORE MAGIC THAN OTHER KIDS. I REMEMBER WHEN YOU WERE ONLY A FEW WEEKS OLD YOU WERE LAUGHING AT PUNS."

"huh."

"He did?" Asgore asked, "who's?"

Gaster cringed realising that he'd kept that from Asgore for a reason. He couldn't tell him he'd gone to see Toriel, no one could know he'd been there, no one could find her. He shrugged, "JUST PEOPLES'. SKELETON PUNS ARE VERY EASY TO MAKE AND I HAD A LOT OF VISITORS. IT'S NOT IMPORTANT."

"i want to see if papy will cringe at another one!" Sans walked over to Asgore and stood on tip toes to look at Papyrus.

Gaster couldn't help but notice how quickly Sans had given his brother a nickname, he found it very cute. He scooped Sans up into his arms, something that was beginning to take more effort than before as Sans was bigger now. "MAKE SURE IT'S A REALLY TERRIBLE ONE!" He said.

"You encourage him too much," Asgore said fondly.

"HE HAS A TALENT FOR IT, ALL TALENTS MUST BE ENCOURAGED!"

Sans wasn't paying attention he was thinking up a really bad joke, "i've got one!"

"Let's hear it then."

"what does a skeleton order at a restaurant?"

"WHAT?"

"spareribs." Sans said quickly and blankly before he laughed at his own joke.

Gaster laughed out loud, Asgore tried to hide a snicker and Papyrus shivered and screwed up his face.

"he really hates them. i'm going to see if i can get him to laugh at one, one day."

"I think you've just found the best way to annoy him. Good luck dealing with that, Gaster. Siblings always try to annoy each other."

"OH I KNOW. I CAME FROM A BIG FAMILY AND WAS THE YOUNGEST, MY SIBLINGS ANNOYED ME TO NO END. I COULDN'T WAIT TO GET ENOUGH MONEY TO LEAVE. NOW I REALLY MISS THEM..."

Gaster hadn't thought about his old family in a long time. He'd told Sans stories from his youth of course but it still wasn't something he liked to think about. He missed them so much and he wished they could meet his children, he wished he could introduce his sons to their cousins. He wondered if his family would be proud of him, of what he's become, of what he's archived. There was no point in wondering what could have been, they were gone, they were dust and nothing could change that.

Sans, still in Gaster's arms and seeing his father looking very upset, wrapped his arms around his neck in a tight hug. He didn't know what to say to comfort him, he couldn't empathise with him as he'd never known loss so he said the only thing he could think of "i love you, daddy."

Gaster was pulled out of his thoughts of the past and back to the present. This was no time to be sad, he should be celebrating the birth of his second child, he should be concentrating on his children, not making his fragile seven year old worry about him. He kissed the top of his skull. "I LOVE YOU BOTH SO MUCH," He forced a smile but when he looked at the child in his arms and the baby in Asgore's the smile became genuine.

* * *

It wasn't long until Grillby came over as well. Asgore was still holding Papyrus but Gaster had let Sans down, the three of them were crowded around the newborn, happily talking.

They all turned when they felt the temperature increase announcing the arrival of the elemental. Grillby waved in greeting still not comfortable talking despite having to do so more regularly with Sans around since he sometimes was too busy sleeping or looking for food or pranking someone to see Grillby sign.

"AH, GRILLBY!" Gaster stood from where he was sitting to greet his other friend. "IF ONLY YOU CAME HALF AN HOUR SOONER I WOULD'VE WON THE BET! NOW I OWE SANS MY DESERT!"

Grillby knew better to ask, he sighed and shook his head, "_you know it's not good to give children too many sweets, you shouldn't bet your deserts."_

Gaster merely laughed and gently smacked Grillby's back, "MY FRIEND, I THINK YOU NEED TO _LIGHTEN_ UP A LITTLE. WHERE IS YOUR SENSE OF FUN!?"

"papyrus cringed again!" Sans looked up at the two, "hey-ya, grillbz."

Grillby smiled at Sans and waved at him before signing a quick "_hello, Sans."_

Sans stood up and took Grillby's hand and pulled him over to Asgore and Papyrus. Gaster followed them and sat down on the seat Sans had previously been occupying, which resulted in Sans giving him a dirty look before he sat down on Gaster's lap with a thud. He responded by simply hugging his son.

"SO, GRILLBY, THIS IS PAPYRUS."

Grillby looked down at the newborn, who was staring up at him with a look of amazement. He stretched up to Grillby with a loud "NYEH!"

Grillby jumped slightly at the sound small sparks flying off of him with surprise. "_Well he's much louder than Sans."_

"More active too," Asgore added, "he's going to be much more work, I think."

In response Papyrus fidgeted in Asgore arms and reached for Grillby.

"I THINK HE WANTS TO MAKE FRIENDS WITH EVERYONE," Gaster laughed.

"It certainly seems that way," Asgore stood slowly, being extra careful with the restless child in his arms. "I don't think he'll settle unless you hold him, Grillby."

Grillby gave a small nod, he looked a little nervous; even though he'd held Sans when he was a baby, Sans was always very still and relaxed, Papyrus was the opposite and he really didn't want to hurt the child by accident.

He took a deep breath to cool his flames a little, he knew that burning bone was harder than burning flesh but he cooled himself all the same. The Gasters were his friends, he didn't want to harm the youngest. Once he was certain he was cool enough he carefully took Papyrus from Asgore.

Papyrus looked very happy to get what he wanted and he wriggled to get comfortable in Grillby's arms. Grillby looked uncomfortably to Gaster, who simply smiled at him, "YOU ARE DOING FINE, GRILLBY."

"... He's really... wriggly..."

"NYA!" Papyrus said as he pocked Grillby's chin and clapped his hands when he saw the way his flames rippled in surprise.

Grillby couldn't help but laugh, Papyrus didn't really seem to have any fear of fire with the way he just reached out and touched the elemental. "... Your kids are crazy, Gaster!"

Gaster hugged Sans tighter and kissed the top of his head, "YEAH BUT I LOVE THEM MORE THAN ANYTHING."

"my bro is the coolest," Sans said as he pushed Gaster off of him and jumped out of his lap, only to get pulled back up. "dad! stop!" he giggled as Gaster began to tickle him.

"NO WAY! LET ME SHOW AFFECTION TO MY BABY!"

"the baby's over there!" Sans pointed in Papyrus's direction.

"YOU'RE BOTH MY BABIES!"

Grillby rolled his eyes and Asgore laughed. Everyone was happy, it seemed that there was nothing that could ruin that happiness.

Almost.

* * *

Undyne ran though the labs as fast as she could, she'd gone to the palace only to be told that the Royal Scientist had just had his second son so the King had gone to see him so she was rather out of breath, especially with the heat of Hotland. It was no place for a fish monster, it was a good thing she was dressed lightly for training and not in any armour, not like she had any yet but she would once Gerson finally let her into the Royal Guard.

She burst into the room laughter was coming from. She was panting and looking ready to pass out as she looked over the five people in the room. A fire elemental was holding a baby skeleton, the Royal Scientist appeared to be playfully annoying his eldest and the King was laughing happily along with him but they all turned to her quickly.

The only sound was of her panting until the newborn made some kind of happy noise at seeing yet another new person to befriend. That seemed to knock everyone back to their senses.

"Undyne?" Asgore slowly approached her, "are you alright?"

"Human," she panted some more, "another human fell," more panting, "snuck past everyone," she took a deep breath, "they were spotted somewhere in Hotland."

Gaster let go of Sans who quickly jumped off his father's lap. "ANOTHER ONE SO SOON..." Gaster looked to Asgore. He knew this wasn't good, it was never good but a human fell about nine months ago, having to kill another so soon couldn't be good for Asgore.

Asgore stared blankly, his hands trembled but his voice was steady and commanding, "Where is Gerson?"

"He went to stop them and sent me to come and get you."

Asgore nodded and patted Undyne's shoulder, "good job, you did well. Please go back home and rest."

"I can help you fight!" She insisted.

"No, I will deal with them."

"But-"

"No, one day you will be in the Guard but as of now, you are a child. Stay away and concentrate on your education and training."

Undyne looked ready to argue but Gaster interrupted before she had the chance. "UNDYNE, IF YOU WANT TO BE IN THE GUARD YOU HAVE TO HELP PEOPLE THAT'S WHAT A GUARD DOES RIGHT?"

She shrugged, "yeah?"

"IF ONE HUMAN MANAGED TO GET THROUGH UNDETECTED, THERE MIGHT BE MORE. I DON'T FEEL SAFE SENDING GRILLBY THROUGH WATERFALL TO GET HOME, ALONE. IF THERE COULD BE MORE, IT'S JUST TOO DANGEROUS. WHY DON'T YOU ESCORT HIM? THEN KEEP WATCH FOR ANY OTHERS. PROVE YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES BY DOING THIS?"

Grillby nodded in agreement. They both knew Grillby would be fine, even if there was another human around, which was unlikely, Grillby was more than capable of taking care of himself. He won't let himself get drowned but it was a good excuse to keep the young preteen away from a potentially dangerous human that she wasn't ready to face yet.

She took the bait and agreed to take Grillby home and then go on patrol. Everything happened so fast after that; Asgore left in a hurry and Undyne and Grillby were not far behind. Leaving Papyrus in the crib Gaster stood and went to his desk to begin to prepare for yet another soul to experiment on.

"dad?" Sans asked, he'd been seemingly forgotten about in the panic and was left standing in the middle of the room, "what's going on?"

Gaster sighed but didn't look up at him, "HUMANS ARE DANGEROUS, THEY HAVE TO BE DEALT WITH QUICKLY."

"why?"

"HUH?"

"why are they dangerous?"

Gaster turned and looked at his oldest. He didn't want to tell him anything, he wanted to protect him but Sans was so curious and he knew that he would learn one day. Best he told him rather than having Sans learn the hard way.

"HUMAN'S HAVE THE POWER TO KILL US ALL. ONE WITH ENOUGH, DT, DETERMINATION, COULD DO SO ALONE AND RATHER QUICKLY TO."

"but why? why would they? we haven't done anything to them."

Gaster shrugged, "BECAUSE THEY'RE SCARED, BECAUSE THEY CAN, BECAUSE THEY FEEL THREATENED, BECAUSE THEY WANT TO. I DON'T KNOW BUT THEY ALMOST KILLED US ALL IN THE WAR, THEY COULD'VE BUT THEY SEALED US IN HERE INSTEAD. I DON'T KNOW IF THAT WAS A MERCY OR NOT, WE HAVE NOWHERE TO RUN SHOULD HUMANS DECIDE THEY WANT US ALL DEAD."

"so asgore has to kill them all?" Sans asked.

Gaster didn't know how he'd figured that out but he wasn't doing to deny it as much as he wanted to. He wanted to keep this from him and only show him the good things in life but the look on his face... Sans knew more than he let on, Gaster could tell. He was so proud of him for being so smart but for the first time he wished he wasn't.

"WE ONLY WANT TO PROTECT THE PEOPLE."

"what if the human is nice?"

"WE NEED HUMAN SOULS TO BE FREE, IT DOESN'T MATTER."

Sans looked shocked and a little upset at that and Gaster wished he could take that back. He wished he'd thought it through but he was shocked and freaking out slightly at the thought of there being another human so soon, only two more now...

"isn't killing wrong?"

"IT IS. VERY WRONG BUT IT'S SOMETIMES NECESSARY. SOMETIMES IT'S A MATTER OF LIFE OR DEATH." Gaster wished he'd just shut up and stop telling Sans these things.

Sans's eye-lights had gone out, he stared at nothing as he thought then very quietly he asked, "how many have you killed?"

"SANS..."

"are you a bad person?" He looked upset, like he was going to cry, "why don't you care?"

Gaster stood and hugged Sans tightly. Everything was all too much, his second child was born, he was thinking of the family he lost, there was another human, they only needed two...

"I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY I KILLED DURING THE WAR, TOO MANY. I WAS ANGRY, I WANTED REVENGE, I WANTED THEM TO BURN IN HELL. I WANTED THEM TO HAVE A BAD A TIME AS I DID. I PROBABLY AM A BAD PERSON BUT I LOVE YOU AND YOUR BROTHER SO MUCH. I DON'T CARE FOR REVENGE AS MUCH AS I DID IN THE PAST BUT I STILL CANNOT FORGIVE HUMANITY AND I'M SCARED THAT ONE DAY A HUMAN WILL TAKE MY FAMILY FROM ME AGAIN. I CAN'T LET THAT HAPPEN. IT'S TOO LATE FOR ME TO BECOME A GOOD PERSON MY LV IS TOO HIGH BUT I WANT TO DO EVERYTHING I CAN SO THAT YOU AND PAPYRUS DON'T HAVE TO SUFFER LIKE I DID."

Sans was shaking in Gaster's arms. "i don't understand."

"WHAT DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND?"

"all of it. why didn't you tell me before?"

"I ONLY WANT TO PROTECT YOU." Gaster released Sans from the hug and got onto his knees before placing his hands on his shoulders. "SANS, ALL I WANT IS FOR YOU AND PAPYRUS TO BE HAPPY. PLEASE DON'T WORRY ABOUT HUMANS, I'LL DEAL WITH THEM."

"too late. i want to help you, dad. i don't think you are a bad person, all you do is protect, you just made some really bad decisions in the past."

"SANS..."

"let me help on the DT projects. tell me what LV is. i want to know, i want to understand. i want to help you!"

Gaster looked at his son, his amazing, smart, lazy son who was too mature for his age and sighed. "IF I TELL YOU NOT TO WORRY AND JUST BE A KID, YOU'LL IGNORE ME, WON'T YOU?"

"yep. i'll study alone if i have to."

Sans wasn't motivated by much, he wasn't motivated by the desire for knowledge, power or money. He was motivated by the happiness and well being of the people he loved and now Papyrus was here, all Sans wanted was to make the world better for him, to make his little brother happy and Gaster knew that. He also knew that when Sans really wanted something he got it, no matter how many times he told him no. It was better if Gaster was there to make sure he didn't get hurt.

"ALRIGHT BUT NOTHING DANGEROUS OKAY?"

Sans smiled and hugged his father. "please, dad, tell me everything."

Gaster reluctantly did. Beating himself up over failing to protect him from it and slowly panicking more and more as the fact that time was running out set into his mind, only two more souls...


	12. Human's Twisted Justice

Sans was really serious about helping Gaster with the DT experiments. Gaster had let Sans help with The Core before but the DT experiments were different, more dangerous, more stressful and Gaster was hesitant to let a seven year old get involved. He gave Sans access to videos and written research, and asked him to write theories and run simulations. Gaster tried to keep him away from the physical experiments but Sans snuck in anyway and he had began to convince Alphys to do the same.

Gaster didn't like having a seven year old and a twelve year old around DT but they were insistent and they were geniuses. Alphys needed more confidence and Sans needed to be more positive and hopeful but they knew what they were doing and they worked hard, harder than the adults sometimes. The only thing Gaster and Alphys's father could do was watch over their children and make sure they stayed safe.

They looked into all kinds of effects DT could have, all the powers that could be unlocked with it, more magical power, immortally, the ability to manipulate space, time travel, the list was endless and Gaster was hesitant to go through with any of the experiments, they were too dangerous. He didn't even have a test subject but Sans kept volunteering; arguing that he was made to be experimented on originally. Of course Gaster refused, he wasn't going to experiment on his own child. Besides Sans was too young to make that decision, he wasn't even old enough to drink, vote or have sex, there was no way he could consent to experimentation. Gaster kept a close watch on him after he insisted on it; he couldn't let Sans experiment on himself.

Gaster was stressed out, he worried about the barrier, he worried about Asgore, he worried about Sans and he still had Papyrus to look after. Papyrus was a very happy child, always laughing, unless Sans told a joke, and seemed to love being surrounded by people. Gaster found spending time with his youngest to be very relaxing despite the fact he was a more difficult child that Sans was; he couldn't get him to sleep, he always wanted to do something, he cried in the middle of the night but Gaster loved him. Papyrus's happy energy always lit up a room, everyone loved him and it seemed to be impossible for anyone to be sad in Papyrus's presence. Gaster was proud of both of his sons; his eldest was a genius and his youngest was a cute little ray of sunshine that was too pure for this world.

There were long nights, where Gaster was hunched over a desk, stressing and raging over his work. He'd throw things across the room, he'd smash things in frustration, he'd punch the wall in anger but he made sure his sons didn't see him like that. He did his best to be a good father and he spoilt his children, he gave them everything they wanted, within reason of course. Work drove him mad, he knew that without his boys he would have probably gone insane long ago.

Much like what he was doing with Sans, he also started a journal about Papyrus filling it with the same kind of things he did Sans's. He just happened to be filming when Papyrus first started walking. He was filming because Sans had given Papyrus a bowl of plain spaghetti when he was sitting on the floor in the living room, Papyrus was making a mess but Gaster didn't care it was cute so he filmed as the child waved fist fulls of pasta around.

Sans came into the room with freshly heated pasta sauce and a big smile on his face as he announced "come and _spaghet_ it."

"NYEH!" Papyrus looked annoyed but instead of simply cringing and moving on like normal, he threw the spaghetti at Sans, hitting him right in the face. Sans stood there shocked still.

Gaster burst out laughing, the camera shacking as he tired to control himself. He couldn't believe he got that on film!

Feeling happy with the footage he went to turn off the camera but stopped when he heard Sans gasp and he looked up to see Papyrus standing on shaking legs. He zoomed in on the infant and focused the camera just in time to capture his child take a slow step forward, then another and another. Papyrus looked really proud of himself as he walked over to his spaghetti covered brother. Papyrus walked with a purpose and when he reached his brother he reached up to him with a grabby motion with both hands. Sans bent down and picked up his brother.

"aww, papy! well done, you're so smart. did you want hugs from your big bro?"

Papyrus reached out to Sans's face and grabbed a noodle off of him and began eating, Sans looked a little disappointed but laughed anyway, "you just didn't want to waste the pasta?"

Gaster was in a fit of laughter, the whole thing was hilarious! "BOTH MY SONS WALKED FOR FOOD..."

"huh?"

"I'LL SHOW YOU THE VIDEO LATER."

* * *

Gaster took a long drag of a cigarette; he was so stressed and was getting nowhere with his research. He was smoking more and more and the nicotine patches and gum Asgore was buying him didn't work, he needed cigarettes and was smoking at least two packs a day. He knew it was bad, he didn't have lungs but it still wasn't healthy, he knew he should quit. He didn't want Sans or Papyrus to start the bad habit just because he did it but it was so hard then he was trying to work and all he could think about was getting his fix.

He'd never smoke in front of his children, however. Sans knew he did it, Papyrus was only a year and a half so he probably didn't understand what he was doing but he was just as smart as Sans was. He made sure that Sans knew smoking was a bad thing and he would do the same with Papyrus but it was something he worried about.

He lent against the wall outside of the lab one foot up and touching the wall as he took another long drag, then lent his head back hitting his skull hard on the wall, he didn't react to the pain just stayed there staring at the roof of the cave. He wanted out. He wanted to see the sky, not rock when he looked up, he wanted to feel the warmth of the sun not the warmth of the magma of Hotland. He felt trapped and claustrophobic. He wanted out of the Underground and he was still so far away from it and it was frustrating. He was angry at himself for not figuring it out yet. He wished he was better.

He finished the cigarette and flicked it away before he pulled out another, sticking it between his teeth and then pulled out his lighter. As he flicked the lighter on he heard the door open and Sans ran out, shouting, "DAD!"

Sans never ran, Sans never shouted, Sans never used uppercase; something must be wrong, very wrong. Gaster pocketed the lighter and cigarette and grabbed his son's arm, trying to fight the panic.

"SANS? WHAT'S WRONG? WHAT HAPPENED? ARE YOU HURT?"

"huh? what? i'm fine! you gotta come quick though."

"WHY? WHAT HAPPENED? PLEASE TELL ME YOU DIDN'T TRY AN EXPERIMENT ON YOUR OWN!"

"oh no, sorry, didn't mean ta scare ya. papy just spoke and i got excited."

Relief flooded through Gaster and his racing soul calmed. He had atomically feared the worst and he was so happy to hear nothing was wrong. "OH," he said simply, then what Sans had said hit him, "WAIT, HE SPOKE? WHAT DID HE SAY?"

Sans's smile couldn't possibly get any bigger as he said, "he said my name! well... he called me 'snans' but it was close enough."

"THAT'S WONDERFUL!" Gaster smiled, he was happy his youngest was finally talking and he was happy to know Papyrus's first word was his brother's name, it meant he loved him despite his terrible jokes. It was also a much better word than 'no.' Once Sans learnt it that was all he would say and he used it to defy any attempt to get him to do anything.

"let's go see if he'll do it again!" Sans took his father by the hand and began to drag him back inside and into his office where he'd left Papyrus in his play pen.

Gaster grabbed his camera and turned it on before giving Sans a quick nod. Sans smiled and picked Papyrus up. "come on bro, do it again!"

Papyrus looked at his brother and then at the camera, he looked hesitant and quickly buried his head into Sans's shoulder clearly a little shy about it.

"COME NOW, PAPYRUS," Gaster said trying to encourage him, "YOU'RE SUCH A SMART BOY, YOU CAN DO IT!"

"it's real easy, sa-ns, sans."

"S-SSS," Papyrus began, still hesitating, it probably wasn't a good idea to put him on the spot like this. Just as Gaster was beginning to give up Papyrus suddenly yelled out, "SNANS! SNANS! _SNANS!_"

Gaster almost melted at how cute it was; Papyrus yelling out his brother's name with his arms in the air, as Sans was hugging him. "OH MY GOD! SO PRECIOUS! MY BOYS ARE THE GREATEST!"

"papy is the greatest!"

"YOU BOTH ARE. MY AWESOME LITTLE BOYS, I'M SO PROUD."

Without turning the camera off Gaster came closer and placed the camera on the table before he pulled Sans and Papyrus in for a huge hug that Papyrus happily returned, Sans was still holding on to Papyrus but he lent his head forward showing his affection in another way.

When they broke apart Gaster turned off the camera and put it away while Sans put Papyrus back in his play pen. With a sigh Gaster unplugged his phone from where it was charging, he was beginning to get hungry but they were out of food in the lab, he looked over at Sans who was sitting on the floor next to the play pen watching Papyrus and writing in a file.

"SANS, DO YOU WANT TO ORDER A PIZZA? OR SHALL I SEE IF ANY OF MY FOLLOWERS HAVE INSTANT NOODLES OR SOMETHING?"

"pizza sounds good," Sans said as he put down his pencil and lay down on his back.

Gaster nodded and turned on his phone and was met with a lot of missed calls and voice mails. Curious but not surprised, (he always had a lot of missed calls from Asgore if he had his phone off of a while,) he played the first voicemail and unsurprisingly it was from Asgore.

"Howdy Gaster, I just got word another human has fallen. They appear to be quite hostile and have taken a few lives. I need you to put the lab on lock down. Don't worry about Grillby he and his family are safe and with me. The human shot a sentry dead and wounded another. The wounded man got everyone to evacuate so most people are safe. They seem to only be killing soldiers but please be safe and don't take any chances. Call me once you get this message."

Gaster was frozen with fear, causing Sans to look up at him in confusion, "dad? is something wrong?"

"SANS..." Gaster said slowly, "GO TO THE EMERGENCY CONTROLS AND LOCK DOWN THE LAB, NO ONE LEAVES, NO ONE ENTERS."

"dad?"

"NOW SANS!" Gaster snapped.

Sans jumped, seeing his father was serious he got up and ran to the terminal in the corner of the room, entered the passwords and locked the lab down, all lights in every room turned red signalling a state of emergency to everyone inside. There were drills for this so no one should panic. Sans didn't know what was going on but he watched his father closely trying to gain any ideas.

Gaster was listening to his other voicemails, he was really hoping the human was already dealt with. He was scared, even if the human was only going after soldiers there was still the fear that they'd get a taste for killing and go after civilians, children... his children.

Most of the voicemails were from his friends begging him to call them back.

Then he noticed a voicemail from Gerson. That wasn't good, the head of the Royal Guard rarely called him and considering the circumstances it couldn't be good. He didn't want to listen to it but he had to.

"Doctor Gaster, you need to call the King back. He's really worried about you and things are getting really bad. Undyne fought the human, saved some people by doing so but she lost an eye. It's bad Gaster, really bad. I had to retreat with her and now the human is headed your way. Please listen to me, lad, and don't do anything stupid, keep away from the human. Call the King."

That was the last message. He dropped the phone on the floor, his mind racing all he could think of was getting his kids out of here but he knew he was being stupid, the lab was under lock down, nothing could get in, they were safe. He'd just have to wait until the Royal Guards or the King took out the human.

"um, dad?"

"NOT NOW, SANS. I'M THINKING." Gaster didn't want to be harsh on his son but he had to think of a plan just in case.

"it's important," Sans insisted.

Gaster sighed and turned to Sans who was looking up at him, his eye-lights gone. "WHAT?"

"we shouldn't have locked down the lab."

"WHY?"

"human's in here."

Gaster pushed past Sans and looked at the security footage showing a young human about thirteen years old walking though the lab towards them, they had a cowboy hat on and a gun in their hand.

"SHIT..." Gaster took a deep breath. Once the lab was locked down there were several puzzles that needed solved to open the doors again, they were there to ensure that no one could get out until everything was safe but the human was here, they were not safe... "WE'LL BE OKAY, SANS. THEY'RE ONLY ATTACKING SOLDIERS, THEY'LL LEAVE US ALONE." If nothing else Gaster had to at least comfort his child, he had to know they were safe even if they weren't.

Gaster pulled Sans close and hugged him quickly before pushing him under the desk and then grabbing Papyrus and giving him to Sans. If the human came in then they wouldn't see them if they stayed hidden under the desk.

"dad? didn't you just say they won't hurt us?"

"THEY WON'T BUT IT DOESN'T HURT TO BE SAFE. JUST STAY OUT OF SIGHT AND KEEP YOUR BROTHER QUIET."

"what about you?"

"THEY'LL SEARCH THE ROOM IF THEY FIND IT EMPTY. I'LL TALK IT OUT WITH THEM, DON'T WORRY."

Sans looked really scared, Gaster forced what he hoped was a comforting smile and Sans nodded. Gaster then got to work hiding Papyrus's toys. He didn't want any evidence of children being there.

He just got done hiding everything when he heard the door open and he turned around fast and saw that a gun was being pointed at him. He threw his hands up and signed his words with his magical hands, "HUMAN, DON'T SHOOT, I'M NOT A THREAT TO YOU."

The human narrowed their eyes at him. "Beware the man who speaks in hands," they said, it sounded like they were quoting someone.

"WHAT?"

"The strange River Person said that to me. You are speaking in hands and yet you tell me you're no threat."

"I'M NOT. I DON'T KNOW WHY RIVER WOULD SAY THAT," he really didn't. He didn't know a lot about them, he'd only met them a couple of times but they knew he wasn't a threat so why would they tell a human to beware of him?

The human kept their gun pointed at him, "I don't believe you! You're a killer, you must be!"

"I AM A DOCTOR, A SCIENTIST. MY WORK IS TO BENEFIT THE UNDERGROUND, I WANT NO PART IN BLOODSHED."

The human approached slowly, never dropping their guard, they looked to his badge their face frowning in disgust. "You're the Royal Scientist? And you have the audacity to tell me you don't want bloodshed! Murderer! You experimented on humans! They deserve justice! You monsters must die for what you have done to the innocent!"

"WHOA, I'M NOT A MURDERER. I EXPERIMENTED ON SOULS NOT HUMANS THEY WERE ALREADY DEAD!"

"So? That's just as bad, you need to face justice!"

"I DIDN'T WANT TO! WE HAD TO DO SOMETHING! WE'RE TRAPPED DOWN HERE, HUMANS KILLED MY FAMILY, MY NIBLINGS! CHILDREN! THEY DESERVE JUSTICE TO!"

"The people who did that are long dead, you monsters live much longer than we do but there is no need to punish the descendants for the actions of our ancestors! You are in the wrong and you are not above consequences! You can't just use people like that!"

Gaster knew there was nothing he could say, this human was intent on killing him but he didn't want to kill them, especially with his sons in the room. He wanted another way, he wanted peace. He couldn't get through to them by talking but he had one last thing to try. "PLEASE, HAVE MERCY! I HAVE CHILDREN! I'M A SINGLE FATHER! WILL YOU SERIOUSLY LEAVE TWO YOUNG BOYS ORPHANED?"

"I don't care, their father is a murderer and they are better off with out you. Now face your sins!"

The human shot their gun, Gaster dodged and the bullet hit the wall but the loud bang of the gun was enough to make Papyrus start to cry, loudly and the fear that his father may have been shot was enough to make Sans come shooting out from his hiding place with Papyrus still in his arms.

"dad!"

"SANS, RUN! TAKE YOUR BROTHER AND RUN! GET OUT OF HERE!"

Sans hesitated, he didn't want to run, he wanted to help his father. He put Papyrus down and stepped between the human and his father, arms stretched out and both of his eyes glowing, flashing between blue and yellow. "leave my dad alone!" He snapped at the human.

"Out of the way, kid or I'll shoot you too!"

"SANS, PLEASE JUST GO, I'LL BE FINE!"

"no!" Sans was shaking with fear but he didn't give up, "i won't let you hurt my dad! he's a good person, he doesn't want to hurt anyone! he's showing you mercy, take it and leave!"

"Fine, you asked for it kid," the human looked crazed, a little too much LV, it had become too easy to kill, too easy to distance themselves and they'd kill anyone who got in the way of their justice. They aimed at Sans and shot.

Gaster turned Sans's soul blue and pulled him out of the way, not letting go of his soul, he pushed him towards Papyrus who was still crying in the corner, still too young to do anything to help, too young to understand what was going on.

Gaster put himself between his children and the human. "HOW DARE YOU! YOU COME IN HERE GOING ON ABOUT JUSTICE AND THEN YOU TRY TO KILL AN EIGHT YEAR OLD! WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?"

"He got in the way of justice, that must be punished."

"HE'S AN INNOCENT CHILD!"

"He's a monster!"

Gaster summoned a sharp bone in his hand, he gripped it like a knife and swung at the human, he didn't want to kill them, he just wanted to get them away from his sons. The make-shift weapon shattered into magic once it hit, but it was enough to make the human stumble back. Gaster shot out bone attacks at them but they dodged swiftly and countered with another shot that Gaster also dodged.

Sans was left stunned and lost on what to do. He'd never seen his father fight before, he was fast, really fast, his attacks hitting and dealing little damage but so quickly it didn't matter. He was dodging every hit to but Sans knew he couldn't dodge forever and he could tell his father didn't have the intent to kill the human by the little damaged that was being done, he knew his father could hit way harder if he wanted to. The human didn't have the intent to stop and accept mercy. Gaster was a powerful boss monster, high stats for a skeleton (who were known for being frail,) high LV, he was fast, he was smart, but he was going to lose because the human would not give up.

"dad!" Sans called as tears began to fill his eyes. He couldn't lose his father, he couldn't.

"WHAT ARE YOU STILL DOING HERE? GO!"

"i won't!"

Gaster ran towards him as he turned the human's soul blue and pushed them back. He grabbed Sans by the arm and began to drag him to the door.

"Stop!" the human called, gun pointed at Gaster, he kept moving all he cared about was getting Sans out of the room.

He briefly forgot about Papyrus. The human pointed their gun at the crying baby. "Stop or I'll shoot him!"

Gaster froze and turned, keeping a tight grip on Sans. "DON'T."

"I'll do it!"

"HE'S AN INFANT! YOU WANT JUSTICE? HOW IS KILLING A BABY JUSTICE!? THAT'S... THAT'S EVIL!"

The human frowned but ignored the comment, not answering the question. "I won't if you do as I say. If either of you get in the way of justice the baby dies."

"oh god..." Sans had never been so terrified in his life. It was bad enough that they were trying to kill his father but his baby brother... They_ couldn't. _Not Papyrus, anyone but Papyrus.

"I'LL DO WHAT YOU WANT! PLEASE JUST HAVE MERCY ON MY CHILDREN!"

The human smirked, "On your knees, demon!"

Gaster did as he was told and got down on his knees, letting go of Sans as he did so. The human pointed the gun away from Papyrus and walked towards Gaster. They pressed the gun to his skull and Sans cried out, tears beginning to fall. "please, no! don't... don't hurt him!"

The human ignored Sans. "I'm passing judgement on you, monster. You are responsible for the deaths of many humans and you experimented on souls. The punishment is death. Any last words?"

Gaster closed his eyes, scared but accepting of death if it meant his boys could live. He only cared about them. "PLEASE, NOT IN FRONT OF MY SONS. DON'T TRAUMATISE THEM. LET THEM GO, LET THEM GET A FAIR DISTANCE AWAY, DON'T LET THEM HEAR IT."

The human hummed, thinking.

"PLEASE, THEY'RE JUST CHILDREN!"

"Fine, get! Shoo!"

"no! i won't let you hurt him!" Sans hugged his father. This couldn't be happening to him. He was afraid, devastated, he didn't want Gaster to die.

"SANS, PLEASE JUST GO. I'LL BE OKAY!"

"no you won't!"

"Go kid, before I change my mind and kill your father in front of you."

Gaster opened his eyes to take one last look at his child. His sweat little boy who _had_ to leave him. "I LOVE YOU."

Sans sobbed, he couldn't leave his father but if he fought... He was as fragile as one could get, he'd die and then Papyrus would die. He wished Papyrus was older, he could fight, he was strong, but he was too young. Sans had no choice and he tore himself from Gaster and picked up Papyrus.

He took Papyrus out of the room and into the opposite one. He wasn't going to let his dad die but he had to make sure Papyrus was safe first. The human pointing the gun at Papyrus had scared him more than anything.

He wasn't going to lose anyone. He left Papyrus under a table and ran back, fear consuming him and tears falling. He got there just in time but had no time to think and acted on impulse, turning Gaster's soul blue and pulling him out of the way from the bullet causing it to simply graze his father's skull.

Gaster got up from the ground clearly confused and stared at Sans in horror. He didn't understand why Sans wouldn't just go! Didn't he know how dangerous this was!?

The human was mad. "That's it, I'm not showing any mercy to any of you skeletons! DIE!"

They aimed at Sans's chest...

BANG!

Gaster dove in the way of the bullet, it hit him in the top of the fibula in his left leg, breaking the bone in two, he screamed out in pain and grabbed the wound. He tired to get up, he couldn't; it hurt so much but he had to. He had to protect his child, Sans and Papyrus were all he had left. They had to live, Gaster couldn't watch another child die, especially a child that was related to him, especially his own. He tired again and pulled himself up, adrenaline the only thing keeping him going. He looked at Sans, who had fallen on his butt and was staring in horror at the human, the reality of the situation setting in on him. Then Gaster looked back to the human.

"I WILL NOT LET THIS CONTINUE. I GAVE YOU A CHANGE TO BE A GOOD PERSON BUT IT APPEARS THAT NOT EVERYONE CAN BE ONE. IT'S TIME FOR YOU TO DIE!"

Gaster raised his right arm as best he could while he was still bent over in pain, his left hand still clutching his wounded leg, he formed a blaster.

BANG!

Gaster leg go of his leg and grabbed his arm with a painful scream, a shot to the ulna, another bone snapped in two. The blaster fizzled out of existence.

Sans snapped out of it and got to his feet. He jumped in front of Gaster, his eyes glowing brighter. "human," he hissed out, "i won't let this go on. take another step forward or raise the gun again and you're REALLY not going to like what happens next."

It was a bluff, Sans knew he was weak, he had one ATK, he couldn't do more than one damage, if that. He'd never fought in his life, he wasn't fast like his father, he wasn't strong like Papyrus but the human didn't know that, maybe he could just scare them into surrendering.

The human took a step forward.

"do you wanna have a bad time?"

The human raised their gun.

Sans summoned his own blaster, it was small but it was still threatening. He'd just learnt how to summon one, he'd fired it only once and it had missed the target Gaster had set up and broke a window, Grillby's front window, the elemental was mad and Sans and Gaster had bolted away, only for Gaster to come back later to apologise and pay for it to get fixed.

Gaster, wounded and limping took the distraction Sans created, he gathered as much magic as he could.

The human began to squeeze the trigger, Sans shot first. He hit his target. One damage.

The human looked at Sans with a tilted head. "Ouch?" they said mockingly, "was that the 'bad time,' you promised? Pathetic. It's my turn now."

A huge blaster filled the room and Gaster smirked, his one eye glowing purple. "THAT WASN'T THE BAD TIME. THIS IS."

The blaster fired, the light was blinding and the human screamed. Gaster took the chance and sent several bone attacks forward before the beam stopped. Once the light of the beam faded Gaster and Sans saw the human laying dead on the floor, the yellow soul floating above their body, shaking.

"SANS, QUICKLY! THE CAPSULE!"

Sans didn't need to be told twice, he grabbed the capsule and sealed the soul away.

Gaster collapsed first, too exhausted and in too much pain to stay standing. Sans followed a second later, collapsing on his father, he to was exhausted and in shock, he couldn't get his mind around what had just happened. He couldn't think so he didn't and gave up on everything for a moment.

That was until Gaster spoke, voice shaking and weak. "WH-WHERE'S PAPY?"

"safe."

Gaster put an arm around his firstborn. "GOOD. WE NEED TO CALL ASGORE... AND I THINK I MIGHT NEED TO GO TO HOSPITAL."

Sans only nodded but didn't get up. He couldn't, he was still in shock and he wasn't processing what had happened.

He got up once Gaster passed out, after realising that his father didn't 'think he might need to go to hospital,' he did, desperately. He slowly picked up his father's now broken phone in a daze and called Asgore.

"heya, asgore, it's sans... yeah, i'm fine... yeah, papyrus is fine too... human's dead but dad's hurt really badly," he choked on a sob, he didn't even notice he was crying. "i need help, right now."


	13. Some Father Son Bonding

Gaster was rushed to hospital, both breaks were really bad and he'd probably be limping for a long time, if not forever but the doctors and healers did what they could. The stay in the hospital wasn't too long but it would be a long time before Gaster could get back to work. However, there were more important things than getting back to work and Gaster's health; Sans was traumatised. He couldn't sleep at night from the nightmares of the fallen human and how close he and his family had came to death. Sans seemed to withdraw from the world, lost in his thoughts as he tired to process what had happened. He just seemed to drift along through the days.

He didn't understand the human, he didn't know why they wanted his dad dead so badly. Badly enough to point a gun at a frightened toddler. They had wanted revenge for the fallen humans, for the humans who died in the war but Sans didn't understand; they didn't know the humans who died and the monsters were justified in their actions. Weren't they?

Killing is wrong but war is war, they were trapped and they just wanted out. Gaster was trying to find another way. Sans just didn't get it. It sounded like so much effort and in the long run it didn't matter; even if they killed Gaster, monsters were still there, still tapped, still killing humans, still experimenting on souls. Everything they would have done was for nothing.

"it's all pointless," Sans said to himself as he stared at the ceiling of his and Papyrus's shared room, "what's the point in trying? we're never getting out of here and if we do humans'll kill us. we all get forgotten in the end anyway, everyone does."

He closed his eyes, he wanted to just sleep away all the problems and never wake up. It was all to much for an eight year old, he was a child who'd seen too much. He should've never been involved with a human like that, he was a child he shouldn't have had to fight to protect his father.

Papyrus woke up and began to cry. Sans sighed, with a broken arm and leg it was much harder for Gaster to tend to Papyrus. Gaster was shuck in bed as much as it annoyed him, he wanted to get back to work but Asgore had insisted he recover first. He couldn't really work when he couldn't walk and only had use of one arm. It also left all the house work to Sans, which he hated since it meant actually putting effort into things that weren't science but he didn't complain, he had to help his father.

Gaster, to, was traumatised. He'd seen a human threaten his children and he'd been badly hurt, how could he not be totally traumatised? The whole thing also triggered past traumas and he was back to having nightmares of the war, of all the humans he killed, of his family dying in front of him. He thought he was long since past the nightmares but they were back and worse than ever. He kept it from Sans, he didn't want Sans to know and worry about him. He was the father, he had to protect his son, it wasn't meant to be the other way around.

But Sans knew about his nightmares. He heard him screaming in the night but he chose not to say anything about it. If Gaster wanted to talk about it then he would, there was no point in pushing it and making things worse. Besides Sans had his own nightmares to worry about.

Sans sat up and picked Papyrus up as he tried to shush him. Papyrus was clearly having nightmares as well, Sans was just glad he was too young to remember any of this and that he'd grow out of it, at least that's what he hoped. He didn't want his very happy little bro to be as traumatised as he was.

"shh, pap, it's ok. big bro's got you, it was just a bad dream. let's not wake dad, alright? I haven't heard him screaming tonight, he needs a good rest."

Papyrus sobbed a little quieter, slowly calming down, he sniffled out a quiet, "S-SN... SNANS!"

Sans sat down on the floor and hugged Papyrus close to him, "i'm here bro, i'll always protect you."

Papyrus and Gaster were the only things stopping Sans from truly giving up, the only things that made him want to keep trying. He used to want to get out of the Underground to see the stars, space fascinated him and his father told him all sorts of things about the sky but all that seemed trivial now. He wanted to see the surface because he knew his dad missed it, he wanted to see the surface not because he wanted to know what it was like but because he wanted Papyrus to see it. So he told himself he'd keep trying, he wouldn't give up even if it was pointless, even if he was just dancing uselessly in the palm of some higher being's hand for nothing but that being's entertainment. He'd try because his father and brother deserved the best because they were the best. The greatest.

* * *

Gaster woke up the next morning, it had been two weeks since the human fell and he was stressed and angry and scared. Sans was scarred for life, there was only one more soul left to get and he was stuck at home while he healed his wounds.

He felt so useless, he couldn't even clean his house with the way he was, he couldn't stand for long enough to cook. He was walking slowly with aid of a crutch and he couldn't even walk far. It was getting better but it was too slow for his liking.

He struggled to get out of bed and stand, he cursed under his breath at the pain. He tried to tell himself the pain was worth it, after all he was in pain because Sans wasn't, he taken the bullets for him and he knew even one wound like this would be way more than enough to kill Sans. So the pain was worth it but it was still damned annoying. He just wanted to go back to work, he had to open the barrier before the last human fell. He had to study the yellow soul of the human who attacked him.

He limped over to his bedroom door, Sans hadn't come to wake him so he was probably still sleeping and they had things to do. He hated the limping, it made everything much harder and he had been told he'd probably always have a limp.

After shrugging over to his sons' room he knocked on the door and got no answer. "SANS! TIME TO WAKE UP!"

A faint and sleepy "uh," was heard from behind the door.

"I'M NOT GOING TO TELL YOU AGAIN, LAZYBONES, IT'S ALREADY NOON!"

"not now, dad," Sans's very sleepy voice called, "five more-"

"ONE... TWO..."

"ok, ok! i'm up."

Gaster opened the door to see Sans was very much not up and was in fact laying on his back on the floor, Papyrus was sitting on his chest and pushing his face. It looked like Papyrus was also trying to get Sans up.

"DID YOU BOYS SLEEP ON THE FLOOR?"

"didn't mean to. pap woke up and wanted hugs. we kinda just fell asleep here."

Gaster sighed and shook his head but he couldn't hide the smile. He was so thankful that his boys were okay, they were alive and things were slowly going back to normal, his pain really was worth it, just seeing them like this made it worth it.

"COME ON, THEN. WE HAVE THINGS TO DO TODAY."

Sans frowned, "like? i thought you were still meant to be taking it easy. ya know? _doctor's orders._"

"I WAS ALSO TOLD TO GO FOR WALKS TO STRENGTHEN MY LEG AND YOU COULD ALSO USE THE EXERCISE."

Sans gasped sarcastically, "dad, are you calling me fat?"

Gaster laughed and shook his head, "YES. YOU REALLY NEED TO STOP SKIPPING P.E."

Sans groaned and carefully pushed Papyrus off of him. "fine, it'll be a short walk anyway." He pulled himself up off of the floor and stretched.

Papyrus stood up as well and copied his brother, then ran over to Gaster, he grabbed his good leg in a tight hug.

Gaster wished he was well enough to bend down and pick Papyrus up but he couldn't so he simply smiled down at the child and said gently, "GOOD MORNING, PAPY. LOVE YOU TO."

Papyrus blinked up at Gaster and smiled, still holding onto his leg tightly he looked him in the eye and said, "DADA!"

Gaster gasped and smiled wider. It was the first time he'd said that and the word made him all the happier. He loved having kids. "AWW PAPY... YOU'RE SO COOL! WELL DONE."

Papyrus giggled at the praise and went running out of the room.

Gaster hopped to turn around and call after his son, "CAREFUL, DON'T FALL!" Papyrus seemed to listen and slowed to a walk. "SANS, GO AFTER HIM AND MAKE SURE HE WON'T TRIP, WE DON'T NEED ANOTHER ONE OF US TO SUFFER BROKEN BONES."

Sans nodded and began to follow his brother. "what about you? can you get down alright on your own?"

Gaster nodded. "YEAH, I'LL BE FINE, IT'LL TAKE A WHILE BUT I'D RATHER YOU MAKE SURE PAPYRUS IS ALRIGHT."

"ok."

* * *

Gaster and Sans walked through Snowdin forest after dropping Papyrus off at the babysitter's. Sans didn't know why Gaster was insistent on him coming with but he was glad he was there to help his father. Gaster walked really slowly with his arm and leg in a cast. He may have been told to exercise but Sans was fairly certain they didn't mean so soon and not for as long.

It didn't surprise him, however, he knew his father _hated _doing nothing, he just had to be doing something and there was nothing anyone could do to make him sit still. They walked through the forest together in silence the only sounds were of their footsteps and the occasional hiss of pain from Gaster when he tired to put his foot down fully.

"do you want to rest?" Sans asked, "or turn back? you seem like you're in a lot of pain."

Gaster looked around and shrugged but he made his way to a tree stump and sat down slowly. "OKAY, I REALLY NEEDED TO SIT DOWN..."

"are you going to be ok?"

Gaster laughed and waved Sans over to him, "I'LL BE FINE. I DON'T NEED MY SON WORRYING ABOUT ME AT THIS AGE. SAVE THAT FOR WHEN I'M OLD."

A cheeky grin spread on Sans's face, "but dad! you _are_ old! you're like what? a thousand?"

"SOMEWHERE AROUND 500 OR 600 ACTUALLY, PROBABLY. I STOPPED COUNTING LONG AGO."

"still super old!" Sans teased. Gaster was certain that if Sans could he'd be sticking his tongue out at him.

"NOT FOR A BOSS MONSTER! I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW I'M STILL VERY YOUNG!"

"keep telling yourself that, _old man._"

Gaster playfully pushed his son as he laughed with him and then using his good arm he pulled him in for a hug.

"I LOVE YOU AND PAPYRUS VERY MUCH, YOU KNOW THAT RIGHT?"

Sans nodded, "how could i not? you say it all the time."

Gaster nodded and looked into the distance, his arm around Sans's shoulder. "I KNOW. I PROBABLY CODDLE YOU BOYS TOO MUCH BUT I DO IT BECAUSE I CARE. I DON'T WANT ANYTHING BAD TO HAPPEN TO YOU. EVER."

"dad? where are you going with this?"

Gaster looked back at Sans, he was still too young to be having the conversion in Gaster's option but he felt it was necessary. "THAT HUMAN SCARED ME MORE THAN ANYTHING, SANS. I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO LOSE YOU, I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO DIE. I ALREADY LOST MY FAMILY TO HUMANS, I LOST AN EYE, THEY MESSED UP MY FACE AND HANDS AND NOW... I'M BEAT UP AGAIN."

"but you'll get better, broken bones heal, you'll just have scars... and that's pretty cool!"

Gaster sighed, "SANS, ONE DAY WE _WILL_ GET OUT, WHETHER WE FIGURE IT OUT OR ANOTHER HUMAN FALLS, WE'LL FACE HUMANS AGAIN. I'M A WORN OUT, OLD VETERAN WHO ALWAYS GETS HURT. I _CAN'T_ LOSE YOU BOYS... BUT I WON'T ALWAYS BE AROUND TO PROTECT YOU."

Sans looked upset and scared at that thought and grabbed onto his father's coat. "dad, what are you saying? stop talking like your dying!" pure terror washed across Sans's face as he looked up at Gaster, "you're not dying... right?"

Gaster moved his hand and stroked his son's skull, "I'M NOT DYING, SANS. ALL I'M SAYING IS THAT I WON'T LIVE FOREVER AND CHILDREN SHOULD ALWAYS OUTLIVE THEIR PARENTS. I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE YOU CAN DEFEND YOURSELF IF NECESSARY."

Sans looked shocked, "you're going to teach me to fight? i thought you only showed me the blasters for fun."

"I DID. I DON'T WANT TO SHOW YOU HOW TO FIGHT BECAUSE I DON'T WANT YOU FIGHTING, BUT WHAT HAPPENED SHOWED ME THAT THERE MAY COME A TIME THAT YOU HAVE TO AND I WOULD AT LEAST LIKE TO KNOW YOU CAN DODGE AND DEFEND."

Sans nodded slowly in understanding at what his father was saying but quickly looked down, "i don't think i'd do very well in a fight no matter how much i train. with my HP and DEF i'm as good as dead the second a human looks in my direction."

"THAT'S WHY I WANT TO MAKE SURE YOU CAN DODGE AND RUN AWAY. I'M NOT ASKING YOU TO FIGHT A HUMAN. IF THE SITUATION OCCURS AND A HUMAN ATTACKS YOU I WANT YOU TO RUN AWAY BUT WE'RE BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY. I'M GOING TO TRAIN PAPYRUS TO AS SOON AS HE'S OLD ENOUGH. YOUR BROTHER CAN PROTECT YOU."

"alright then, how're we doing this? are you going to throw attacks at me?"

"OH HEAVENS NO! I WILL NOT RISK HURTING YOU. INSTEAD..." Gaster lent over and picked up a pile of snow, trying to form it into a ball with only one hand, "YOU'LL DODGE THIS!"

Sans giggled, "a snowball fight, huh?"

"IT'S TRAINING. I'LL THROW SNOWBALLS AND YOU DODGE AS MANY AS YOU CAN!"

"why do i have a bad feeling about this?"

"OH SANS, RELAX OR THIS WILL BE _SNOW_ FUN!"

Sans laughed hard at that one, "hey, that was a really good one. i guess it will be '_ice _to try."

"LET'S GET ON WITH IT THEN!"

Sans ran a little bit away from his father and Gaster threw the snowball at him, Sans dodged it easily and then another was thrown in his direction, dodged. They kept coming and Gaster kept missing. Just as Sans was thinking that this was really easy and he'd been worried about doing actual work for nothing, Gaster changed it up, he summoned ten magical hands and scooped up snow in each before throwing it all at once. Sans wasn't ready and got hit.

"LESSON ONE, NEVER LET YOUR GUARD DOWN, ALWAYS EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED. IF THOSE WHERE REAL ATTACKS YOU'D BE DEAD."

Sans shook off the snow from his clothes. "you cheated!"

"NO I DIDN'T. YOU MERELY FORGOT I COULD DO THIS."

"humans can't do that!"

"THEY CAN DO OTHER THINGS. YOU NEED TO BE FAST SANS, ONE HIT AND YOU'RE DEAD. TRY AGAIN."

They started again, Gaster throwing snowballs and Sans dodging as best he could. He got hit a lot but Gaster was impressed; he was doing much better than he thought he would. For a lazy, chubby kid he sure was fast and Gaster was very, very proud of him.

Once they were done with the snowball dodging. Gaster had Sans practice some attacks and he gave more instructions on the Gaster Blasters, demonstrating from where he sat on the stump, showing Sans how to make them bigger, how to have more than one out at a time. Sans was very good with the blasters. He then had Sans work the blasters into his bone attacks.

He shouted out advice and encouragement and praise as he went. Smiling as Sans shot out a wall of bone followed by two blasters. "VERY GOOD, SANS! NOW FASTER!"

"i don't think i can do it any faster!" Sans called, he was tired but he was enjoying himself.

"OF COURSE YOU CAN! BELIEVE IN YOURSELF! THE ONLY WAY YOU CAN DEAL ANY DECENT DAMAGE IS TO GO SO FAST YOU BASICALLY COMBO LOCK THEM, GET OFF AS MANY AS YOU CAN BEFORE THEY ATTACK AND YOU HAVE TO DODGE."

Sans nodded and tried again, repeating the move but a little faster.

"EXCELLENT! NOW FOR THE NEXT ONE-" Gaster was cut off by his ringtone. He sighed and answered it using a magic hand.

"Ah, Doctor, are you alright?" it was the babysitter.

"YES I'M FINE. WHY?"

"Oh, it's nothing, it's just getting quite late. I was worried something happened to you, those wounds should not be taken lightly."

Gaster used another magic hand to pull back his sleeve and look at his watch, he cursed quietly under his breath, he was meant to pick up Papyrus half an hour ago. Time just flew by so fast and with no sun it was hard to judge the time by the amount of light.

"I'M SORRY. WE'LL HEAD BACK NOW. I'LL GIVE YOU DOUBLE FOR THE EXTRA TIME."

"Please, dear, I don't care about the money, just be safe."

"THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONCERN. I'LL SEE YOU SOON," Gaster hung up and turned to Sans, "TIME TO GO HOME."

Sans let out a sigh of relief, "thank god! i'm so tired. that sure was a workout!"

Gaster chuckled and began to pull himself up. Sans ran over and helped Gaster to stand. "AH, I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL I HEAL. THEN I CAN HELP YOU TRAIN."

Sans smiled, "i can't wait, this was a lot of effort but i did have fun."

"I'M GLAD. WE'LL DO THIS AS MUCH AS WE CAN."

* * *

Gaster would take Sans out to train as much as he could. He wanted the peace of mind that came with knowing that Sans could defend himself if the worst happened.

He very proud of his son, he was getting faster and more skilled every session and his improvement only went faster once Gaster had healed enough to move more freely and could help a lot more by demonstrating and actually moving around as the threw snowballs. He even managed to spar with Sans since Sans did so little damage and Gaster could simply pelt his son with snow. Gaster certainly wasn't what he used to be, now with a permanent limp and a cane helping him walk, he wasn't as fast and more clumsy but everything he did was still helping Sans get better.

They had a lot of fun training together and often ended up messing around more than actually training. Gaster lost count of how many times their training ended with them rolling around in the snow in a fit of laughter at something stupid one of them had said. He'd lost count of how many times Sans's laziness had gotten the better of him and they ended up at Grillby's eating junk food instead. Gaster was stressed, work was hell and he was often angry but when he was with his sons he couldn't help but feel like the happiest monster in the world.

As soon as Papyrus turned four, Gaster had him join in with them and Papyrus loved it far more than Sans did. He wasn't as fast as Sans was but he was stronger and his blasters were much bigger than Sans's, Papyrus was only four and his blasters rivalled Gaster's own. Gaster had no doubt that Papyrus would easily be stronger than him one day. Papyrus happily named his blasters his "SPECIAL ATTACK!" and Gaster could see why; they'd easily stop a human in their tracks.

He couldn't stop praising his boys and much like he had once referred to himself as "THE GREAT GASTER," he was beginning to refer to his sons as "THE GREAT SANS AND THE GREAT PAPYRUS," the former not really leading anywhere but the latter seemed to really stick and Papyrus was soon referring to himself as such.

He was so happy to know Papyrus could easily protect Sans and Sans could easily drag Papyrus away quickly if things took a turn for the worse.

Gaster smiled as he lay in bed, his mind racing over formals and theories but settled on his sons. "IF THE WORST HAPPENS, AND I DIE, THEY'LL BE OKAY," he said aloud right before he feel asleep.

The simulations and primary tests were finally done, he was sure it was safe. It'd been years in the planning but tomorrow he'd make a start on what he had planned to do ever since the attack, he'd inject DT into himself.


	14. It Begins

Gaster looked over his notes one last time. He had to be 100% sure on this. He knew what happens when DT is injected into a monster's soul because he'd done it to Sans. But Sans was alright, he gotten it out and the DT Extractor had been improved vastly. He'd inject it into his own soul, observe it for a few days or weeks and if it started looking bad he's strap himself into the machine and get it out. He'd be fine as long as it was properly controlled but he had to do it alone. This was the kind of experiment Sans had been volunteering for so he didn't want to give him ideas. He also knew Asgore would not approve of monster testing and would defiantly try to stop him.

Gaster rubbed his skull, looking down at the papers, he didn't need to prepare a lot of things; only a sterile needle, a camera to record the results, the DT Extractor and of course DT. He'd need to do it alone, maybe he could call Asgore and see if he wanted to watch the boys for a while.

Speaking of the boys...

Gaster sighed as Papyrus screamed out his best war cry and jumped off of the table he was standing on and onto Sans's back, arms around his neck and legs around his torso. "GO HORSEY! TO THE DARK LORD'S LAIR!" Papyrus yelled, letting go with one hand and pointing forward.

"i think you're getting too big for this bro," Sans said, he looked like he was struggling to keep a hold of his brother.

"NO! YOU'RE JUST LAZY!" Papyrus tapped the top of Sans's skull with his fist, "ONWARD!"

Sans groaned and Gaster decided he should put a stop to it before they got hurt. "I THINK THAT'S ENOUGH. PAPYRUS, LET YOUR BROTHER GO."

"NO!"

"PAPYRUS, NOW."

The four year old whined, "I DON'T WANT TO!"

"please, bro, you're kinda heavy and i don't wanna drop you."

"NO!"

Gaster was about to scold his youngest but Sans spoke first, "hey papyrus, if you keep being a naughty little skeleton, we'll have to put you in a _rib cage!_"

Papyrus got off of Sans quickly once he said that, "NO! THAT WAS HORRIBLE!"

Sans was in a fit of laughter, as was Gaster although he tried to contain it.

Papyrus stomped his foot a few times, "NO, STOP LAUGHING, IT WASN'T FUNNY!"

Sans managed to stop laughing only to poke his brother's cheek bone and through giggles he said "aw, come on, bro, you're smiling!"

"I AM NOT!"

"you are~"

Papyrus summoned a blue bone attack into his hand and raised it up, he looked to make sure Sans saw it and was standing still before bringing it down on him, again and again.

"ok, ok, i'm sorry!" Sans called, Papyrus didn't stop.

Gaster realised he should really put an end to this quickly, he stood up and grabbed his cane before walking or limping rather, over to his sons as quickly as he could. He knew Papyrus wouldn't hurt Sans but if Sans moved or if Papyrus, who was still very new to this more advanced magic, lost control it could end really badly. He carefully took hold of Papyrus's wrist and lowered his arm. "THAT'S ENOUGH, PAPYRUS! DON'T HURT YOUR BROTHER! THIS ISN'T SAFE! IF SANS EVEN FLINCHES HE'D GET BADLY HURT, YOU KNOW HOW LITTLE HIS HP IS," Gaster told his son firmly.

Papyrus dispelled his attack and looked down at the ground, realising he was in trouble, "I'M SORRY, DADDY."

"IT'S ALRIGHT, YOU DIDN'T MEAN ANY HARM. JUST DON'T DO THAT EVER AGAIN AND APOLOGISE TO YOUR BROTHER!"

"SORRY, SANS!"

"it's ok, bro."

"THERE, FRIENDS AGAIN," Gaster smiled at his boys, "BUT I THINK YOU BOTH HAVE TOO MUCH ENERGY, MAYBE YOU SHOULD GO PLAY OUTSIDE?"

Papyrus gasped and began jumping up and down, "CAN WE?"

"YES, JUST DON'T WANDER TOO FAR AND BE BACK _BEFORE _FIVE. AND SANS KEEP AN EYE ON PAPYRUS, DON'T FALL ASLEEP!"

Sans nodded and took Papyrus's hand, "don't worry. i'm not a little kid, we'll be fine."

Papyrus began to pull Sans along towards the door, "LET'S GO! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL DEFEAT THE DARK LORD AND SAVE THE PRINCESS! ... AND YOU ARE PLAYING BOTH PARTS!"

Sans laughed as he allowed himself to be pulled along, "you're so cool, bro."

"I KNOW! AND YOU, BROTHER, ARE COOL TO!"

Gaster watched them leave with a final shout of "BE GOOD," which was met with his boys each giving him a thumbs up.

Limping back to his desk, Gaster sat with a thud and turned on his computer, bringing up live security footage so he could keep an eye on his sons while they played outside the lab. He picked up the notes again, this was it. He got his kids out of the lab without them being suspicious of what he was doing and he knew they'd be outside for a while. He worked fast anyway.

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER ONE.

DT WAS SUCCESSFULLY INJECTED INTO THE SUBJECT.

NO NOTABLE DIFFERENCES YET.

I WILL BEGIN THE TESTS.

I WILL START WITH A SIMPLE ONE.

A TEST OF THE HEALING POSSIBILITIES OF DT.

I WILL CUT THE SUBJECT AND SEE HOW FAST THE WOUND HEALS.

THE EXTRACTOR IS ON STANDBY."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_Sans slammed his fist onto the desk, he needed those journals, he needed that research. He thought this would be it, he thought for sure they'd be here and that he could open them. They were his only lead._

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER TWO.

SUBJECT IS STABLE, ONLY SHOWING SLIGHT DEFORMATION.

SMALL CUTS AND FRACTURES HEAL QUICKLY.

THE SUBJECT SOMETIMES BLACKS OUT, IT IS UNKNOWN IF THIS IS AN EFFECT OF THE DT OR SOMETHING ELSE...

THE SUBJECT ISN'T REALLY THE HEALTHIEST.

WITH THIS MUCH DT I FEEL LIKE I'M GETTING SOMEWHERE.

SUBJECT CAN...

FEEL TIME AND SPACE. ALMOST SEE THE WORLD'S CODE...

I CAN MANIPULATE IT WITH THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF DT AND TECH."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_He needed it. He'd only seen one entry. He needed them all._

_Sans deiced to keep trying, he owed it to Papyrus._

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER THREE.

THE FIRST MACHINE HAS BEEN BUILT.

SANS AND ALPHYS HAVE BEEN VALUABLE ASSISTANTS.

IT WAS SO EASY WITH THEM HELPING.

THEY'LL DO WELL IN MY PLACE ONCE I'M GONE.

THIS MACHINE WILL HELP TO MANIPULATE SPACE, IT'LL GIVE THE SUBJECT THE ABILITY TO FOLD REALITY TO ALLOW FOR TELEPORTATION.

WE MAY SIMPLY BE ABLE TO TELEPORT OUT."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_"oh come on, one of these fuckers has to work!" Sans was getting annoyed with it now. It had taken such a considerable amount of time to get the computer to work again, he'd wasted so much time on it. There had to be something here. _ _He was desperate, desperate for anything, no matter how small._

* * *

Gaster nodded to his followers as they strapped him onto the metal table, a huge laser gun above him, they looked worried but Gaster had done all he could to reassure them he'd be fine. He had to do this, he was closer than ever to setting monster kind free. If he could teleport to the surface he could go to a human hospital and take seven souls form the recently diseased then he could come back and free everyone. He was the only one who could do this, the only boss monster, except for the King and Toriel and the only monster to have determination.

"dad? are you sure about this?" Sans asked. He was standing at his father's feet, wearing a lab coat over his stripped hoodie. Alphys was by his side looking just as nervous as he was but too scared to say anything.

"I'LL BE FINE, SANS, IT'S PERFECTLY SAFE."

"then let me do it instead."

"NO, YOU'RE STILL JUST A KID SANS, I CAN'T PUSH THE RESPONSIBILITY ONTO YOU." A weak excuse but he couldn't let anyone know about the injections he'd been giving himself.

"dad i-"

"YOU'RE ELEVEN, DON'T SAY YOU'RE NOT A KID, YOU ARE."

Sans nodded, "i'm staying next to the emergency stop button. i don't care how much you tell me not to press it, if i think you're in even the slightest amount of danger i'm mashing it."

Gaster sighed, his poor son was so scared although he seemed to be trying to hid it. It wasn't like Gaster could blame him. Sans was still traumatised after all.

Gaster gave Sans a firm nod and he watched as Sans made his way over to the button, Papyrus was there as well, interested in what they were doing. Gaster was happy about that. Papyrus didn't seem that interested in science, he was more interested in cooking and the engineering of puzzles, so having him interested in this was a surprise. It was probably because his father was the test subject.

Once Gaster was sure everyone was at a safe distance he gave the order to turn on the lasers and the machine came to life. Gaster let out a scream as the laser shot into his broken eye, another reason he was a good candidate for this. There was a change that it could cause blindness and he was already half blind so it didn't matter.

Gaster felt really dizzy, like the whole room was spinning, it probably was, for him anyway as space was bent and broken around him. It was disorienting but not painful.

"dad!"

"DADDY!"

Gaster hardly heard his sons shouting but he couldn't understand why they were. The machine was working, he was fine... Right?

He saw Sans's two glowing eyes grow bigger as he came closer. Gaster didn't know if it was because space was being messed with or if it was because Sans was running towards him.

The next thing he saw was the laser move away from him and hit Sans in the right eye, he screamed out but the laser was still going. It shot into his eye for about ten seconds before the machine crashed to the ground, still firing but hitting a wall. Sans groaned in pain and collapsed onto the floor with a thud. Gaster tried to sit up, he didn't know what was happening but Sans was hurt and he needed to help him, but he couldn't move; he was tired down tightly. He began to panic and pull at his restraints but the dizziness just got worse and he began to weaken... How did he lose that much HP?

The last thing he heard before he passed out was Papyrus shouting; "THE BUTTON'S WORKING AGAIN!"

* * *

Gaster awoke in another room, on a bed. He sat up fast and felt dizzy, dizzier than he'd ever felt before, his empty eye socket hurt and he felt like he might puke. He did, suddenly. Someone just managed to push a bucket in front of him to catch it. Whoever it was, was at his blind side so he turned to see Papyrus sitting on Alphys's lap. Gaster squinted a little trying to see them, still feeling rather dizzy. Papyrus handed his father his glasses and Gaster put them on, the dizziness subsided slightly now his vision was back to normal but didn't go completely. Both Papyrus and Alphys looked at him with with a frown, they were clearly worried about him.

"DADDY! ARE YOU OKAY NOW?" Papyrus blurted out.

Gaster groaned in response before shaking his head, trying to rid himself of the dizziness. "PAPY..." He let out another groan and grabbed his head. "WHAT HAPPENED?"

"T-the machine... um, w-well it m-malfunctioned, w-we couldn't c-control the l-level of intensity and um, well... i-it was too much f-for you to t-take, y-you were p-passing out and um, l-losing HP... a-and the emergency s-stop didn't work either," Alphys explained looking rather guilty.

Everything came rushing back to Gaster and he turned to get up, after putting the puke bucket to the side. "WHERE'S SANS!? IS HE ALRIGHT? OH GOD..."

"S-Sans is f-fine. H-he ran forward b-before we could stop h-him. He s-saved you but hasn't w-woken yet." Alphys gestured behind herself to another bed where Sans was lying, still unconscious but he was alive and Gaster felt a rush of relief.

He stood up as fast as he could, he didn't have his cane so he struggled to limp to his eldest's side, ignoring Alphys and Papyrus's pleas for him to rest. Once there he collapsed to his knees and took hold of Sans's hand, he couldn't stop his sobbing as he muttered apologises to him over and over again.

He looked up once he heard Sans groan. Sans opened his eyes, his left glowing but his right remained normal. The glow slowly disappeared and he rolled his head to the side. "oh, hey daddy'o, you look like shit," he mumbled and then let out a groan, "...that was fucking terrifying."

Gaster didn't have it in him to scold Sans for swearing, he simply got onto the bed pulled his son in for a hug. Gaster held his son tightly and Sans began to cry as he hugged his father back just as tightly. Soon Papyrus joined them by jumping onto the bed and grabbing onto his father and brother. Gaster removed one arm from Sans to hug Papyrus as well and the three cried together in a group hug, listening to Gaster's sobbed apologises.

The Gasters let go of each other once they calmed down. Gaster gently caressed his sons' faces, he never wanted to let them go. "I'M SO SORRY," he said again, "I LOVE YOU TWO SO MUCH, I CAN'T BELIEVE I EVER PUT YOU IN DANGER!"

"THAT WAS REALLY SCARY," Papyrus shot forward, practically gluing himself to Gaster's side who then placed a gentle, comforting hand on his youngest's back.

"IT'S OKAY PAPYRUS, WE'RE ALL OKAY NOW..._ARE_ YOU ALRIGHT SANS?" Gaster asked, he noticed that Sans kept blinking his right eye and rubbing at it.

"um... don't freak out but i can't see _right_ out of my right eye."

Gaster's jaw dropped and Papyrus gasped.

"YOU... YOU'RE BLIND IN THAT EYE?" Gaster asked slowly.

Sans shook his head, "no...? i don't think so? it's just all really... blurry?" he closed his left eye just looking out of his broken one. "yeah, blurry, like the world is spinning but my left eye is fine."

"Y-you were h-hit with the l-laser when you u-used b-blue magic to m-move it," Alphys spoke up, she'd been watching the whole exchange awkwardly in the corner. "Y-your lucky t-that you d-did s-start losing HP as w-well."

Gaster put his head in his hands, he couldn't believe what a huge failure this was. He'd hurt his own son; ruined his eyesight, could've killed him. He felt guilty, he felt his sins crawling on his back.

Seeing his father look so distraught, Sans placed a hand on his shoulder, he wanted to comfort him and let him know he didn't blame him. "hey, i'm ok. i'm not blind and we're both alive, that's what's important. i'll get used to it... probably... i hope..."

Gaster nodded. "YOU'RE RIGHT, I LOVE YOU SANS AND I'M SO SORRY. I SHOULDN'T HAVE DONE THAT."

Sans pulled his father down to him and hugged him. "it's ok. i forgive you."

The room went silent for a few minutes and Gaster simply held his children close until Papyrus spoke up, "SO, DID IT WORK?"

Gaster looked down at his son and shrugged. "DUNNO, I'LL TEST IT NOW." He stood up, he legs felt weak but he simply wanted to see if he could teleport.

"Um... D-Doctor Gaster, m-maybe you should r-rest?"

"I'M FINE. WE'RE ON A SCHEDULE!"

"Y-yes but we don't know w-what'll happen. What i-if you t-teleport into a w-wall o-or something?"

Gaster shrugged and faded away, leaving the other three confused and a little panicked. "what just-" Sans began.

Gaster came limping back into the room now with his cane. "IT WORKED!" he said happily. "I JUST NEED SOME PRACTICE. I WENT RIGHT WHERE I WANTED TO BE BUT WHEN I CAME BACK I ENDED UP OUTSIDE OF THE ROOM INSTEAD. ONCE I GET THE HANG OF IT I CAN TRY TO LEAVE THE UNDERGROUND."

"COOL!" Papyrus clapped his hands and bounced on the bed.

"wow ok. well at least something good happened. don't do anything like that again though."

"SANS, CAN YOU DO THAT TO?" Papyrus asked, turning fast in the air and stopped his bouncing. "YOU GOT HIT WITH THE LASER TO!"

Sans shrugged, "probably not..."

Gaster looked at his eldest, he hoped he could. He didn't want Sans leaving the Underground before it was safe but teleportation could be useful, especially for running away and he wanted something good to come out of that horrible accident. He hated how Sans had gotten hurt and didn't want Sans's vision destroyed for nothing. Although Sans didn't have DT anymore but that probably wasn't really necessary for short distant teleportation, the machine was probably enough for that.

"TRY IT," Gaster urged.

"how?"

Gaster shrugged again, "I JUST KIND OF DID IT? THINK ABOUT WHERE YOU WANT TO GO AND... WILL IT?"

Sans took a deep breath, he didn't even know where he wanted to go, he could try to teleport straight to his own bed but he'd have to come back to stop his family from freaking out.

He got an idea and closed his eyes. Then Sans faded away much like Gaster had.

"AAH," Grillby screamed, sparks flying off of him and one hand grabbing his chest, the other gripped the stove top as he blinked down at Sans who had just appeared in front of him.

"heya, _hot shot_," Sans laughed at his own joke and grabbed a ketchup bottle off of the counter top.

"...Sans," Grillby said slowly, "...Where did you come from?... I thought you were in Hotland?"

Sans snapped his fingers, shot Grillby finger guns and winked, the ketchup now in his pocket and faded away again.

"that. was. awesome!" Sans said as soon as he saw his family and Alphys again.

"YOU CAN DO IT! THAT'S GREAT!" Gaster smiled proudly and hugged his son again.

"ok, ok! dad! stop hugging me!" Sans protested as he tried to shove his father away.

"WHERE DID YOU GO?" Papyrus interrupted, clearly very interested in his father and brother's new powers. He was once again jumping on the bed.

"i teleported."

"YES, BUT WHERE?" Papyrus pouted but didn't stop his bouncing.

"grillby's," Sans said as he squirted some ketchup into his mouth. "poor guy screamed. I must have given him quite the scare."

"SANS, THAT'S MEAN! YOU NEED TO SAY SORRY!" Papyrus scolded his big brother.

Gaster frowned at the bottle, "YOU STOLE THAT, DIDN'T YOU?"

Sans lowered the bottle at blinked at it, "... more like i forgot to pay?"

"IT'S COMING OUT OF YOUR ALLOWANCE," Gaster said as he faded away again, reappearing in Grillby's kitchen.

Grillby, who was in the same position trying to make sense of what just happened, screamed again, even more sparks flying, when he saw Gaster suddenly appear before him.

"I AM VERY SORRY ABOUT MY SON," Gaster apologised with a bow and offered no explanation for what happened, he placed the gold on the counter and faded away again.

Grillby slid down to the floor, wondering if he was so overworked that he was losing his mind but the ketchup that was missing from the counter and replaced by gold was proof that wasn't true.

He lent back hitting his head on the wall with a thud and muttered out, "... Those skeletons are _so_ weird..."

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER FOUR.

A HUGE SUCCESS AND TWO HUGE FAILURES.

SUCCESS: SUBJECT CAN TELEPORT.

FAILURE: SUBJECT CANNOT TELEPORT OUTSIDE THE BARRIER.

IT SEEMS THE BARRIER ACCOUNTS FOR TELEPORTATION.

TRULY NOTHING CAN GET OUT WITHOUT A HUMAN SOUL.

I WILL HAVE TO LOOK INTO TIME TRAVEL INSTEAD OF THE MANIPULATION OF SPACE AND MATTER, IF WE ARE TO BE FREE.

THE OTHER (BIGGER) FAILURE IS THAT UNFORTUNATELY SANS WAS HIT WITH THE LASER.

I THINK HE'S FINE.

IT'LL TAKE SOME TIME FOR HIM TO GET USED TO BEING PARTIALLY BLIND IN ONE EYE BUT HE'S STRONGER THAN HE APPEARS.

TELEPORTATION OR AS SANS HAS BEEN CALLING IT 'SHORTCUTS,' HAVE STILL BEEN VERY USEFUL, DESPITE THE FAILURES.

WE CAN GO HOME AND TO WORK/SCHOOL IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE, SAVING A LOT OF TIME.

...

_IT'S DARK_

_..._

SUBJECT IS MELTING, TIME TO REMOVE THE DT.

AFTER A SUITABLE AMOUNT OF TIME HAS PASSED, DT INJECTIONS SHALL BEGIN AGAIN."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_Sans sighed in annoyance, maybe he should try something else... No, there were sixteen journals he hadn't seen, he'd only tired _ _four and he'd started this, might as well finish it, no matter how annoyed with it he was. No matter how much he wanted to just give up and go back to bed._

_"for papyrus..."_

* * *

Gaster threw a snowball at Sans, who shortcut out of the way. Mixing in the space manipulation into their training was helping a lot. Sans was much faster now, although none of his stats had risen. Gaster and Sans were having fun testing their limits with their new powers and Papyrus loved the extra challenge he now had while trying to hit Sans with snow and while sparing with Gaster.

Gaster was sparing with Sans, Papyrus was serving as referee since both of the older skeletons were known for cheap shots and cheating which Papyrus deeply disapproved of; everyone should fight fair and any self respecting human would as well!

Nether father or son could land a hit on each other, Sans was getting better and faster and Gaster beamed with pride as he narrowly avoided a bone attack. He was still confidant in his dodging despite his limp. He stepped forward, a snowball in hand and ready to throw, only to trip over and fall. Sans had hit him with a small bone attack at Gaster's right; Gaster hadn't seen it.

One damage was done.

No, more than one, no... his HP was still falling... how?

Gaster looked up at Sans, panicking.

"dad? what's wrong?" Sans asked confused, "did the fall hurt?"

"W-WHAT DID YOU DO?" Gaster asked, filled with relief as his HP stopped dropping.

"what do you mean? i tripped you with a small attack."

"NO YOU... _DRAINED MY HP_..." Gaster showed Sans his stats.

Sans blinked at it, "there's no way _i_ did that much damage. it must have been the fall, not my attack."

"YOU DID IT. IT WASN'T THE FALL."

Papyrus came over and looked at his father stats, he was frowning and handed him a cinnamon bun. "ARE YOU OKAY?" Papyrus asked.

"I'M FINE, PAPY." Gaster ate the bun and looked back at Sans, he kept his stats out and told him, "DO IT AGAIN."

"but i might have hurt you..."

"JUST DO IT SANS. THIS IS VERY INTERESTING, THE LASER MAY HAVE GIVEN US OTHER POWERS. DO IT FOR SCIENCE!"

Sans hesitated but he saw how serious his father was and nodded. He summoned a bone and sent it towards Gaster. It did one damage but a KR appeared next to his HP bar and it started depleting.

Papyrus handed Gaster a nice-cream, he ate it. "FASCINATING..." Gaster was awestruck, he didn't know how to feel about this, he should be happy that his son was doing more damage but when it hit, it _hurt_, not quite physically but it was like he was experiencing all the hurt he'd ever inflicted on others. It didn't make him scream or double over in pain but it hurt him deep inside his soul, it made him remember the war. Karma.

Sans still seemed confused, "what was that? i hit papy with an attack yesterday and that didn't happen."

Papyrus nodded, "HE DID! IT WAS VERY MEAN AND NOT NICE AT ALL BUT IT DIDN'T HURT!"

"IT'S SOME KIND OF KARMA POWER, I THINK," Gaster explained, "I'VE HURT A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THE PAST AND MY LV IS HIGH. PAPYRUS, YOU ARE A SWEAT CINNAMON ROLL WHO NEVER HAS NOR EVER WILL HURT ANOTHER PERSON, SANS'S ATTACKS CAN'T HURT YOU..."

"wow, ok... so can you do that to, dad?" Sans also didn't know how to feel about that, he was used to being weak and not dealing any damage but suddenly... It was a big change.

"I DON'T KNOW BUT I HAVE NO WAY TO TEST IT. I CAN'T HURT MYSELF WITH MY OWN ATTACKS AND CLEARLY IT DOESN'T WORK ON PAPYRUS, NOT LIKE I'D NEVER HURT YOU BOYS ANYWAY."

Sans shrugged, a lazy grin on his face. He put his hands on the back of his skull and turned away, for some reason he felt unconformable, like something was wrong. He didn't want to confront it, he was scared so he did what he did with most of his problems; he ignored it and changed the subject. "well, that's really something. speaking of karma and getting what one deserves, i'm hungry and after that i think i deserve some _flaming __hot_ food. can we got to grillby's?"

Papyrus groaned but didn't protest as Gaster nodded and took Papyrus by the hand. "I'LL GET YOU A NICE-CREAM ON THE WAY, PAPYRUS. YOU CAN CHOOSE WHAT WE HAVE TOMORROW. FAIR?"

Papyrus nodded and gripped onto his father's hand tightly. "YES," He said. They began to walk back towards the town. Papyrus looked up at Gaster, something was wrong. Papyrus knew there was something wrong with his father but he couldn't put his finger on what it was... He was much more tired than he used to be but that wasn't that odd, after all he worked so hard. There was something else, sometimes it seemed as if he wasn't there. Of course Gaster was always there but Papyrus couldn't help but feel that sometimes when he looked at Gaster it felt like he was just an empty shell, like his mind, his _soul_ was somewhere else. Maybe he could ask Sans about it later. Just as Papyrus thought that, there was a... glitch? Part of Gaster just glitched! Was he just seeing things? He couldn't be. Papyrus knew that there was definitely something very wrong. These experiments were a bad idea...

Gaster felt happy as he walked; he could take the evening off to spend more time with his children and go right back to work first thing in the morning. Spending time with his sons was very important after all and he didn't want them to worry about him. He didn't realise it was already far too late for that.


	15. Descent

Taking his soul carefully in his hands, Gaster pushed the large needle into it. It was painful but he ignored it as best he could as he injected the DT inside his soul. It burned as it filled his soul, turning it from white to red. It made him feel nauseous but that was quickly replaced with the feeling of determination. He sat down in his chair with a thud and tipped his head back. It was better than smoking, it gave him a rush smoking simply couldn't, in fact Gaster hadn't had a cigarette since he started these experiments. He couldn't get addicted, he was doing this for science, for the Underground, for his sons (who were currently at school/nursery) and for his King but the power was truly amazing.

Gaster looked down at his soul, that was still in his hand and frowned at it. The soul was already beginning to melt but Gaster figured he'd be fine for a few days and slipped his soul back into his rib cage. He wasted no time and quickly got to work and turned on his computer. If his soul, and soon after body, were going to melt faster than before, he had very little time, not like he wasn't already under time constraints.

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER FIVE.

THE SECOND ROUND OF INJECTIONS ARE UNDERWAY.

SUBJECT BEGAN MELTING IMMEDIATELY.

I WILL HAVE TO ACT QUICKLY.

MANIPULATION OF SPACE WAS A FAILURE.

TIME TO BEGIN TESTS ON TIME.

IT HAS TO WORK.

I'M _DETERMINED _TO MAKE IT WORK."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_Sans wasn't surprised, he doubted any of them would open but he wasn't going to stop trying... Maybe he'd take a break to calm down and bring back a snack._

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER SIX.

THIS WILL TAKE MUCH LONGER THAN I ORIGINALLY THOUGHT.

TIME TRAVEL IS MUCH MORE COMPLICATED EVEN WITH DT.

THERE ARE MANY MORE VARIABLES TO CONSIDER.

I DON'T WANT TO CREATE A PARADOX OR HURT ANYONE.

DT MUST BE THE ANSWER.

I'M UPPING THE DOSE, I'M CERTAIN THE SUBJECT CAN HANDLE IT."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_Sans had taken his break and shortcut back. Now with a burger in hand he began again. If they all had to fail Sans wished it would be a little faster, each error message took too long to pop up in his opinion and if he was away from his station for too long Papyrus would come looking for him and if he found him here..._

_Sans didn't want his little bro to worry about him._

* * *

Gaster tidied away the needle and equipment from his latest injection. His soul hurt where he'd stuck the needle but other than that he felt fine, the DT was helping him a lot, not just with his research but his leg to, he wasn't limping as much anymore but he kept his cane, he didn't want anyone to get suspicious and they would if he was suddenly walking normally again when he'd been told he never would.

"hey dad!"

"AH!" Gaster jumped and almost dropped the box of syringes. He put the box down before he turned to face his eldest son and frowned at him, "SANS. WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? YOU ARE MEANT TO BE IN SCHOOL."

Sans shrugged, "p.e. thought i'd shortcut here and help you until it ended. after all you've been so stressed recently..."

"NO, GO BACK, NOW."

Sans groaned and sat on the floor, "but i don't want to exercise! that's so much effort."

"AND HELPING ME WITH MY WORK ISN'T EFFORT? I'VE GOT TO SAY SANS, IF YOU'RE NOT PUTTING 110% INTO OUR WORK, I DON'T WANT YOU HELPING."

"but this is fun and interesting! p.e is just a lot of pointless running and sweating and i'm not up for that."

Gaster shook his head, "SANS, GO BACK TO SCHOOL. AS MUCH AS I LOVE YOUR HELP, YOU HAVE TO STAY IN SCHOOL THIS WAS OUR AGREEMENT."

"but i'm not learning anything in p.e so it doesn't matter if i skip."

"YES IT DOES, YOU NEED TO EXERCISE AND SPEND TIME WITH YOUR FRIENDS! ALSO, I DON'T WANT ANOTHER PHONE CALL FROM THE SCHOOL EXPLAINING THAT YOU HAVE ANOTHER AFTER SCHOOL DETENTION FOR SKIPPING NOR DO I WANT ANOTHER MEETING ABOUT IT WHERE I HAVE TO YELL AT THE TEACHERS FOR NOT ENGAGING YOU MORE." Gaster crossed his arms and looked down at his son, he couldn't have Sans here right now.

Sans stood and looked up at Gaster, trying to give him puppy eyes, "please, just this once."

Gaster looked at his child and sighed, he knew how to get Sans to listen to him. "FINE."

"really?"

"YES, YOU CAN SKIP TODAY ONLY, BUT NO GRILLBY'S FOR TWO WEEKS. I'LL EVEN TELL GRILLBY NOT TO SERVE YOU IF YOU GO. YOU HAVE TO STAY HEALTHY AND IF YOUR NOT GOING TO EXERCISE, YOU'RE NOT GETTING JUNK FOOD."

Sans looked torn, like he was thinking hard on if he was really that desperate to skip; he really like Grillby's food too much. Eventually he sighed, "fine, i'll go back to school."

Gaster laughed "GOOD. NOW, OFF YOU GO BEFORE YOU'RE LATE. I LOVE YOU!"

Sans sighed and waved his hand in a dismissive manner, "yeah, yeah."

"YOU'VE GOT TO SAY IT BACK~"

With a heavy sigh Sans muttered a quick, "love ya, dad," and then looked up at his father, his concern clear on his face. "take care of yourself," he said before he faded away back to school.

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER SEVEN.

SUBJECT PASSED OUT TODAY DURING ROUTINE CHECKS ON THE CORE.

SANS AND PAPYRUS BELIEVE I'M SIMPLY OVERWORKED.

ASGORE SUGGESTED I TAKE A HOLIDAY. I CAN'T AND I WON'T.

I BELIEVE WE WILL NEED THE CORE'S FULL POWER TO MAKE A TIME MACHINE WORK.

I'LL WORK ON IMPROVING IT SO THE UNDERGROUND DOESN'T LOSE ALL POWER WHEN THE TIME COMES.

SANS AND ALPHYS CAN HELP ME TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS.

THEY ARE VERY, VERY INTERESTED IN LEARNING MORE ABOUT THE CORE."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_Sans put his legs on the desk and took a bite. He clicked on the next one, hoping for some luck but not expecting to have any. He just wanted something, one little thing. Anything that might lead to him having his happy little family back._

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER EIGHT.

I'M REMOVING THE DT AGAIN.

THE SUBJECT'S BODY BEGAN TO MELT A LITTLE.

IT WASN'T NOTICEABLE YET BUT THE BOYS ARE CUDDLY, ESPECIALLY PAPYRUS.

THEY ABSOLUTELY CANNOT NOTICE; THEY'RE WORRIED ENOUGH AS IT IS.

THE WITHDRAWAL IS AWFUL AND SUBJECT IS MOODIER.

ONCE THE CORE'S BEEN IMPROVED THE INJECTIONS WILL START AGAIN.

A HIGHER DOSE THIS TIME."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_Sans was half way through them, definitely no point in turning back now. He checked his phone for the time and any messages from his brother, the only message he had simply said; "BROTHER, I'M GIVING YOU FIFTEEN MINUTES BEFORE I COMING TO YOUR STATION. I SWEAR IF YOU'RE AT GRILLBY'S AGAIN I'M LOCKING YOU IN THE HOUSE AND MAKING YOU EAT A SALAD BECAUSE IT'S GOOD OF YOU AND YOU CLEARLY DON'T DESERVE MY DELICIOUS SPAGHETTI WITH HOW LAZY YOU'VE BEEN RECENTLY!"_

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER NINE.

THE CORE HAS BEEN VASTLY IMPROVED.

EVERYONE SEEMS TO BE FUSSING OVER ME, BUT I'M FINE.

SURE, I AM WORKING A LOT MORE AND SPENDING LESS TIME WITH MY BOYS...

ONCE WE'RE FREE I'LL MAKE IT UP TO THEM.

ONCE WE'RE FREE I'LL SPEND ALL MY TIME WITH THEM.

WE'RE SO CLOSE, I CAN FEEL IT.

...

EVERYTHING IS DARK."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_Sans had fifteen minutes, he should make it though them all, as long as the error messages popped up quickly and if the bloody thing went faster and stopped lagging._

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER TEN.

EXPERIMENTS HAVE BEGUN.

I HAVE THE POWER TO... RESET...

I DIED...

I PUSHED THE CORE TOO MUCH DURING AN EXPERIMENT.

IT OVERHEATED AND BLEW UP.

I TURNED TO DUST IN SANS'S ARMS.

I WOKE UP IN BED THE MORNING OF THE ACCIDENT.

NO ONE REMEMBERED IT.

I STOPPED THE ACCIDENT FROM HAPPENING.

DT IS TRULY A FASCINATING THING.

I'M FAR TOO DETERMINED TO DIE.

I BEGAN EXPERIMENTING WITH THIS, KILLING MYSELF ONLY TO COME BACK BEFORE IT HAPPENED.

I CAN SAVE AND RELOAD.

I CAN RESET.

THIS BRINGS A LOT OF OPTIONS.

IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG I CAN JUST TRY AGAIN.

I'M EXCITED.

I'M HAPPY.

_WE'RE GOING TO BE FREE!_"

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_He just wanted one to open but this was ten of seventeen and he'd seen number seventeen, he needed the previous ones. Ones that were written when he was less... mad..._

* * *

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PAPYRUS!" Gaster smiled at his youngest son who was wearing his new red scarf as his eldest son placed a cake in front of him.

Gaster still couldn't believe his youngest was already five and his eldest had just turned twelve. The years just flew by and he was no closer to freeing them, that was until recently.

He usually took his sons' birthdays off so he could spend time with them but this year he couldn't, after all he only had so much time before the DT caused him to melt. He tried to make up for the fact he was working by buying his sons double the amount of gifts but he knew that his boys would rather spend time with their father. He felt guilty and promised himself he'd retire as soon as the barrier was open. He had more than enough money to do so and then he could simply concentrate on his kids.

Back when he was young, before the war, all that mattered to him was science, even after the war all that mattered was his work and becoming a great scientist but now all that mattered to him was his children. They were the greatest things to ever happen to him, he was so proud of how smart they both were. He'd done so well raising them, they were kind, smart, strong children who'd both do great things in life.

He kissed the top of Papyrus's head and apologised before he went right back to work.

As he was about to leave the room he heard, very clearly, Papyrus saying; "SANS, I'M REALLY, REALLY, SUPER WORRIED ABOUT DAD."

"yeah, me too, bro," Sans replied.

Gaster felt a whole new guilt in his soul, it was bad enough he was missing their birthdays but to make them worry... He thought he was acting fairly normal but for a five year old to notice... Papyrus was rather observant though.

He didn't know how much he was glitching, he didn't know how obvious it was to_ everyone_ that he wasn't well. He refused to listen to anyone who tried to help him, he was barely aware people were trying to help him.

"_THEY SHOULDN'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT ME,_" Gaster thought to himself as he walked into The Core to continue work on his time machine.

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER ELEVEN.

THE TIME MACHINE IS ALMOST COMPLETE.

I HAVE FORMULATED A PLAN.

I CANNOT MAKE IT SO THE BARRIER WAS NEVER ERECTED.

I CANNOT CREATE A PARADOX.

I'LL GO BACK TO THE WAR, BEFORE THE BARRIER WAS PUT UP.

THAT WAY I CAN LEAVE THE MOUNTAIN.

THEN I'LL TAKE THE SOULS OF THE ALREADY DEAD HUMANS.

I'LL HAVE TO REMAIN HIDDEN.

I CAN'T FACE MY PAST SELF OR MY SIBLINGS OR EVEN PAST GRILLBY.

BUT I CAN DO IT.

IF I FAIL I CAN SIMPLY RESET."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_Sans had finished his burger. Five more entries to go... He checked his phone again, he still had time. He also had a text from Grillby, it was his birthday and his niece gave him an action movie DVD and his brothers had bought him some special snacks you only got in New Home. He wanted to know if he and Papyrus wanted to come round to watch the move and eat junk food with him after the bar closed. Sans figured that'd be a good distraction from all this work and agreed._

* * *

"DADDY! GUESS WHAT!" Papyrus said happily as he ran towards Gaster.

"NOT NOW." Gaster didn't even look at his son.

"BUT-"

"NO, NOT NOW. I'M BUSY. GO AWAY. GO BOTHER SANS, AND STOP ANNOYING ME!" Gaster snapped and gave Papyrus a little shove, not hard but enough that he'd get the idea.

Tears began to fill the five year old's eyes and he stomped his foot and ran away as the tears began to fall.

Gaster sat and hit his head on his desk, he couldn't believe what an asshole he was to his small child, to both his children. He was acting cold towards them, he didn't want to, he just didn't want them near anything dangerous, he didn't want them to know what he was doing to himself. He felt like he deserved to be punished for the way he was acting towards his boys. He lifted his head again only to smack it onto the desk again.

He was going to spoil them so much once it as over.

But right now he had to inject himself with DT again. He needed more, he needed so much more.

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER TWELVE.

THE TIME MACHINE IS NOW COMPLETE.

FIRST TESTS HAVE GONE SMOOTHLY.

SUBJECT WENT BACK IN TIME TO THE WAR AND CAME RIGHT BACK AFTER A FEW SECONDS.

IT WAS FRIGHTENING BUT IT CAN BE DONE.

SOON I WILL START MY MISSION.

A FEW MORE SIMULATIONS AND TEST RUNS.

I HAVE TO MAKE SURE I WON'T MESS UP THE FUTURE OR GET STUCK IN THE PAST."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_He wasn't really fully concentrating on them anymore, he'd mostly given up on them. All he had to do was click and wait so he let his mind wander to tonight's movie. He hoped it'd be good._

* * *

The skeleton brothers were very worried about their father. They understood he was stressed and unwell. They were both noticing the glitches but didn't know what they meant. The skelebros didn't blame him for being cold and moody. They tired to talk to him, tired to get him to take a break, sometimes it was met with an annoyed tone of "GO AWAY," sometimes Gaster simply ignored his sons. They didn't know if he was doing it on purpose or if he simply was so absorbed in his work he really didn't hear them.

Sans walked into his father's office to check on him, he popped in head in the door and was about to ask if he could come in but stopped when he heard Gaster mutter. It sounded like gibberish. It was quiet and his voice sounded hoarse as if he had been talking for a while but he'd been alone in the office all day. Sans knew he hadn't been on the phone because Papyrus had found Gaster's phone in the fridge that morning and had come to Sans very confused, the phone had remained in Sans's pocket since. Gaster was losing his mind, Gaster was glitching regularly and his boys wanted to help.

Sans walked into the room slowly, trying to be as quiet as possible and stood next to his dad.

"DARK... COLD... ALONE... TIME... EMPTY... I HAVE TO..." There was the glitching...

Sans couldn't make sense of what Gaster was saying but it scared him for some reason. He watched closely and saw Gaster was writing various formals in wingdings on a piece of paper.

"SHATTERED... BROKEN... I WANT OUT!"

Sans watched as a longer, stronger glitch hit.

"ARIEL...KRISTEN... CALIBRI... GEORGIA... TEMPUS... I'M SORRY... I COULDN'T SAVE YOU..."

Sans frowned, those were the names of his father's siblings, his aunts and uncles he never met.

"SANS... PAPYRUS... HELP ME..."

Sans felt a chill at his own name.

"...IT'S BECKONING... ERASE... I CAN'T... MAKE IT STOP CALLING!"

Gaster slammed his hands onto the desk as another glitch hit, Sans jumped.

"I'M DOING THIS FOR THEM... MY BOYS..."

The glitching seemed to stop. Gaster buried his face in his hands and Sans heard him sob. He didn't know if he should reach out to his father or not, he didn't want to give him a fright or make him worse but he didn't know what to do.

"dad?" Sans said without thinking it through.

Gaster jumped and looked to his eldest in shock. He had no idea how much he heard nor did he really care. He pulled Sans close to him and hugged him tightly, Sans returned the hug as he tried to whisper comforting things to his father. It didn't help. As soon as the hug ended Gaster went right back to his mutterings and glitching. Sans left fearing for his father.

Sans took his father's phone out of his pocket and called Asgore.

Asgore couldn't help Gaster either, he received the same treatment the brothers did.

Sans called Grillby.

Grillby couldn't help Gaster either, he received the same treatment the brothers did.

Sans called Grillby's family; his mother, his brothers, his sister-in-law.

They couldn't help Gaster either, they received the same treatment the brothers did.

Sans called for his father's Followers.

They couldn't help Gaster either, they received the same treatment the brothers did.

Sans was scared, Papyrus was scared. Gaster was lost.

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER THIRTEEN.

THERE IS SOMETHING AMISS.

SOMETHING I'M OVERLOOKING.

SUBJECT IS SEEING DARKNESS.

SOMETIMES CODE.

WHAT IS THIS...?

IT GETS WORSE WITH EACH TEST OF THE MACHINE.

BUT I COME BACK UNHARMED EACH TIME SO IT'S SAFE.

I WILL CONTINUE UNLESS IT'S PROVEN OTHERWISE."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_Just three more to check. Sans would just do them all. If Papyrus found his station empty it'd take him a while to get to Grillby's, Sans would just go there and suffer the punishment of a salad. He wondered if Toby The Annoying Dog would eat lettuce if given it... Probably not, heh oh well._

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER FOURTEEN.

THERE IS A MULTIVERSE.

SO MANY ALTERNATE UNIVERSES.

TOO MANY TO NAME.

I'VE SEEN SO MANY.

BEEN TO SO MANY.

BEEN VISITED BY SO MANY.

SOME ARE FRIENDLY AND MY ALTERNATES AND I HAVE EXCHANGED RESEARCH AND DISCOVERIES.

OTHERS ARE... NOT SO FRIENDLY... I MUST BE CAREFUL IN THOSE.

I MUST RETHINK MY PLAN.

I WANT TO MESS WITH MY OWN TIMELINE, NOT OTHER UNIVERSES'.

BUT THIS DISCOVERY IS FASCINATING.

MAYBE I CAN PASS THIS RESEARCH TO MY SUCCESSOR, WHOEVER THAT MAY BE.

THEY CAN CONTINUE THIS ONCE I'VE RETIRED.

AS INTERESTING AS THIS ALL IS, THE BOYS ARE MORE IMPORTANT."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_Sans was getting depressed. He was truly thinking it was impossible now. How does one save someone who never existed...?_

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER FIFTEEN.

THE VOID.

IT'S BETWEEN TIME AND SPACE. OUTSIDE OF IT.

EVERYWHERE AND YET NOWHERE.

ALWAYS AND YET NEVER WAS.

A PLACE I MUST NOT END UP.

IF I DO THERE IS NO WAY TO GET BACK.

NOT EVEN BY RESETTING.

BEING TRAPPED THERE IS THE WORST POSSIBLE SCENARIO."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_One more to go, Papyrus was probably almost at Grillby's if not already there..._

_Sans hoped he'd have time to make it there before Papyrus. He couldn't find out what he was doing, he'd just worry and Sans couldn't put his brother through that again._

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER SIXTEEN.

THERE IS A POSSIBILITY I WILL END UP SHATTERED ACROSS TIME AND SPACE.

I MAY END UP TRAPPED IN THE VOID.

BUT IF IT MEANS MY BOYS WILL BE FREE SO BE IT.

AFTER ALL PEOPLE WILL LEARN FROM MY MISTAKES.

I'M READY.

TOMORROW I WILL MAKE THE PREPARATIONS.

THE DAY AFTER THE NEXT EXPERIMENT WILL BEGIN.

...FOR MY SONS...

I RISK IT ALL."

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_"shit!" Sans cursed when he heard his phone ring but answered it anyway, he'd be in more trouble if he didn't._

_"SANS, WHERE ARE YOU!?"_

_"um..."_

_"YOU WERE NOT AT YOUR STATION AND GRILLBY SAID YOU LEFT OVER AN HOUR AGO! ARE YOU ALREADY HOME? YOU'RE NOT SICK ARE YOU?"_

_"...no..."_

_"THEN WHERE ARE YOU? I'M WORRIED ABOUT YOU, BROTHER. YOU'VE BEEN SO QUIET LATELY AND YOU'RE LAZINESS IS GETTING WAY WORSE!"_

_"sorry, bro. there's just been a lot on my mind lately."_

_"LIKE WHAT?"_

_"nothing you need to worry about."_

_There was a long silence before Papyrus spoke again. "...IT'S DAD, ISN'T IT?"_

_"no, haven't thought about the old man in years."_

_Sans heard Papyrus huff on the other end. Was he making his bro mad? Papyrus very rarely got angry..._

_"STOP LYING TO ME! I'M NOT AS NAIVE AS YOU SEEM TO THINK I AM!"_

_With a sigh Sans gave up, "... i miss him..."_

_"SO DO I," Papyrus said gently. "SO MUCH. THERE'S NOT A DAY THAT GOES BY WHERE I DON'T THINK OF HIM. I WANT HIM BACK. YOU DO AS WELL... YOU'RE AT THE LAB, AREN'T YOU?"_

_"yeah."_

_"BOTHER..."_

_"i'm not doing anything dangerous, just looking for old files. i can't find anything. it's hopeless..."_

_"IT IS NOT! I REFUSE TO BELIEVE EVEN FOR A SECOND THAT DAD IS GONE FOR GOOD! I'LL HELP YOU LOOK AND I WON'T TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER!"_

_Sans sighed, he wanted to argue, to tell him to stay away but that's what his father did... Sans wasn't going to make the same mistakes. He wasn't going to push away people who were trying to help him, he'd hurt Papyrus more if he did that..._

_"thanks, bro. you're the greatest."_

_"I KNOW! BUT YOU DON'T NEED TO THANK ME. STAY WHERE YOU ARE, I'M COMING TO HELP."_

* * *

"ENTRY NUMBER SEVENTEEN

DARK, DARKER, YET DARKER

THE DARKNESS KEEPS GROWING

THE SHADOWS CUTTING DEEPER

PHOTON READINGS NEGATIVE

THIS NEXT EXPERIMENT

SEEMS

VERY

VERY

INTERESTING

SANS... ALPHYS...

WHAT DO YOU TWO THINK?"

* * *

_[Error. Error. Retracted. File does not exist.]_

_Sans and Papyrus sighed as they looked at the screen._

_"i knew it. no leads, no clues, nothing. we might as well give up."_

_"NO! I _ _REFUSE TO GIVE UP. SO THERE'S NOTHING HERE, WE'LL JUST LOOK SOMEWHERE ELSE!"_

_"what's the use? we've looked everywhere, bro. there's nothing. he's gone, really gone."_

_"I DON'T BELIEVE THAT AND NEITHER DO YOU! I WILL NOT GIVE UP, WE NEED HIM BACK. LET'S GO LOOK ELSEWHERE."_

_Sans sighed, "ok..."_

_He didn't want to give up but he really didn't believe it was possible but Papyrus did. Papyrus was Sans's only motivation, the only thing that mattered._

_Sans wanted his dad back more than anything but had no hope._

_Papyrus had hope and was far more desperate than Sans to get his dad back. He wanted to make up for all the time they lost. Papyrus had been too young when it happened._

_Papyrus was Sans's hope._

_They'd never get back the time they lost, he missed his sons' childhoods but they'd get him back... One day._

* * *

Sans had gone into his father's office late at night. He was worried about tomorrow's experiment. He and Alphys were helping as much as they could but he knew Gaster was keeping things from them and for as huge and important as this experiment was he didn't want them anywhere near The Core when it was underway.

Sans was not going to stay in the hotel like he was told, he couldn't. He knew his father was on a path to self destruction and he wasn't going to let that happen.

He hacked into his father's computer. If he was going to save him he had to know everything. He didn't like what he found...

Videos for his father injecting himself with DT, videos of the extraction of the DT from his melting body, recordings of mad ramblings about darkness and coldness, detailed reports of Gaster's deaths and 'resets.' A drawing of a family photo done by Papyrus was mixed into the files, so was a photo of Sans and Gaster with the followers. The same pictures were printed out each with the words "Don't Forget," written on it, it was Gaster's hand writing but it wasn't in wingdings but in an aster font, their family font.

What Sans saw upset him, he hated seeing his father like this and he hated that Gaster thought that he had to. He thought he had to suffer but he didn't, he was a good man, it wasn't fair.

Sans didn't care about getting to the surface, he just wanted his father. Papyrus was too young to be without a parent... So was Sans. They were just kids and they were scared and they felt guilty that they could do nothing to help.

Sans didn't agree with any of these experiments.

He opened the latest journal entry, number seventeen and read it. He hated it. It was proof of his father's madness and he didn't understand why he seemed to be asking Sans and Alphys what they thought. He wasn't telling them anything about this, Sans knew nothing about this so why... why was Gaster asking what they thought?

He was mad. He was insane.

Sans deleted his and Alphys's names form the entry, leaving only the ellipses in that line.

He was about to read the other journals but stopped when he heard a sound, someone was coming. He shut down the computer and hid.

Gaster walked into his office, completely unaware that Sans was hiding under the desk, like he had when the human attacked.

Gaster injected more DT, a dose far greater than any previous. He began to glitch violently and passed out on the floor and started ramblings in his 'sleep.'

Sans didn't know what to do. How was he meant to help someone who's glitching? That's not taught in first aid classes. People don't glitch...

Sans was scared and at a loss on what to do. There was nothing he could do and he couldn't watch what was happening anymore. He ran away... and hated himself for doing so.

He'd stop him tomorrow. He had to.


	16. Lost to Time

Gaster's Followers began to set up time machine, plugging it into The Core and beginning to start it up. They were quiet and tense as they worked; worried about their boss but they couldn't really argue with him, he wouldn't listen and they always followed no matter what. They trusted Gaster and they hoped his sons were wrong about his weird illness.

Gaster, meanwhile, was in the next room, injecting more DT into his soul. His followers knew about it now as he had ordered a Follower to have the DT Extractor ready to remove it all once he was back with the souls. It was something they did worry about.

This was it. Gaster was going to free The Underground. Asgore wouldn't have to bare the burden, Toriel could come back, his children would never have to be afraid ever again and Gaster would have his revenge as he'd soon have the power of a god.

He wished it was a school day but it was summer holidays, his boys were off and after the holidays Papyrus would start school. Gaster thought about how wonderful it would be to drop him off on his first day, would he be as nervous as Sans had been? Would he be excited? Papyrus was smart and incredibly kindhearted, he would be loved at school.

Then there was Sans, his eldest had skipped a year, he was so smart and funny. One more year and he would be a teenager. He still loved working with his father, Gaster was very proud. Sans wouldn't be the next Royal Scientist because he was still too young and Gaster was retiring after this experiment but Gaster hoped that one day Sans would become Royal Scientist, he was certainly more than smart enough.

He didn't think of the dangers that awaited him, he didn't think of the growing darkness. He thought of his boys, how proud he was of them, how he was going to give them everything they could ever want. To make up for how he'd been recently he got them a hotel room in New Home with a huge TV and there was a big play area nearby. He told them they could order whatever they wanted and left more than enough money for them. A little treat for today to keep them away from The Core just in case things went wrong.

Gaster was confident, he was determined, he couldn't and wouldn't fail. There would be no mistakes.

He left the room and walked up to his time machine with confidence. He smiled at his followers as he typed the code into the machine. It was time.

* * *

Sans wasn't going to sit around waiting. As soon as he heard his father leaving the hotel room early in the morning, Sans got up. He hadn't managed to sleep at all, he was too afraid. He was exhausted but he couldn't afford to be lazy, he began to get dressed.

"SANS?" Papyrus turned around in his bed and yawned, "WHAT TIME IS IT?"

"early, bro. go back to sleep." Sans knew what he was going to do would be dangerous, he couldn't involve Papyrus.

Papyrus, however, didn't listen to his brother and sat up, "WHY ARE YOU UP? YOU'RE NEVER UP EARLY."

"i can't sleep. i'm just going for a little walk," Sans lied.

Papyrus looked around the room and got out of bed. "WHERE'S DADDY?"

Sans shrugged. "i think he went to work. he has very important things to do today."

"SANS, WHAT'S GOING ON?"

"what do you mean, bro?"

"YOU AND DAD ARE LYING TO ME! SOMETHING'S NOT RIGHT WITH DAD AND I WANT TO KNOW SO I CAN HELP HIM! I KNOW YOU KNOW SOMETHING. SANS, I DON'T LIKE THE GLITCHING! HOW DO WE MAKE IT STOP?!"

Sans sighed and sat down on the bed pulling Papyrus, who was almost in tears, onto his lap and hugged him. "dad loves us very much, papy."

"I KNOW, AND I LOVE DADDY. THAT'S WHY I WANT TO HELP!"

Papyrus turned as much as he could in Sans's arms so he could look his brother in the eyes. Sans could see just how serious he was and as much as Sans didn't want Papyrus involved he was much too smart, he was going to find out and he wasn't going to let Sans leave until he did. He clearly already knew more than he let on...

"papyrus. dad's gone mad. he's been injecting himself with DT and he's messing with time and space. he's kept so much from me so i don't know what's going on but there are so many timelines and well if he keeps messing with them something bad_ will_ happen. he's going to go back in time but he might... shatter himself or even erase himself all together. all these space and time experiments are dangerous."

Papyrus nodded. "YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT HOW YOU AND DAD GOT THOSE POWERS."

"in a way, yes."

"DAD'S IN DANGER."

"yes."

"YOU'RE GOING TO STOP THE EXPERIMENT."

"yes."

"I'M COMING WITH YOU."

"no."

Papyrus jumped off of Sans's lap and turned to face him head on. He stomped his foot as if he were having a tantrum but he didn't cry or scream. "I'M COMING WITH YOU," he repeated, firmer.

"it's too dangerous, papyrus. dad could shatter himself across time and space, we... _you_ could be killed."

"THEN I SHOULD COME! I HAVE TO PROTECT YOU! I'M STRONGER!"

Sans looked at his brother, the younger boy wasn't going to back down. Sans should just shortcut away but... If he failed, if he died, Papyrus would never forgive himself. Sans was hesitating.

"IF ANYONE CAN CONVINCE DAD TO STOP AND COME HOME THEN IT'D BE THE GREAT PAPYRUS!"

"heh, you're so cool, bro," Sans gave in. They'd save their dad together, the three of them would come home and the boys would cook their father something and they'd all laugh and play and they'd be a normal family again. They'd go to Grillby's where Sans would annoy Papyrus with fire puns and Gaster and Grillby would laugh. They'd visit Asgore, Papyrus would show off his Special Attack, Sans would impress the King with random facts and Gaster would look on with pride. The boys would go to school, Gaster would do less dangerous work, everything would be normal. Sans and Papyrus would grow up, they'd go to college, get jobs, maybe have families of their own and Gaster could grow old, happily.

Sans took his brother's hand. Papyrus smiled up at him. They teleported to The Core.

* * *

Gaster couldn't stop smiling as the machine began to start up, this was it! This was really it!

The machine was ready, Gaster was ready.

"dad!"

"DAD!"

Gaster turned to see his sons running towards him, he wasn't all that surprised, he knew they were worried but he couldn't let them get in the way. He just wished the fancy hotel was enough to distract them. They were going to try to stop him, that couldn't be allowed. He wanted them to be safe, he was scared they'd get hurt so he did the only thing he could think of to protect them; he summoned a thick wall of bones in front of them, forcing the boys to stop.

Gaster was becoming goopy, his body melting much faster than ever before, the glitching was much more violent, more regular and longer.

Sans and Papyrus were desperate and they called out again, "stop!"

"STOP!"

"YOU BOYS SHOULD'VE DONE AS YOU WERE TOLD AND STAYED AT THE HOTEL!" Gaster snapped.

_He didn't want to snap at them, he wanted to gently tell them it was okay._

He yelled at his boys, angrily, "ONCE THIS IS OVER YOU'RE BOTH GROUNDED! STOP RUINING MY WORK!"

_No! He didn't want to say that. He wanted to thank them for trying to save him._

"GET READY!" Gaster called to his Followers, he had to do it fast before his children ruined it. "I'M DOING IT NOW!"

_He didn't want to, he wanted to go home. He wanted to spend time with his sons._

"dad, stop! this isn't going to go how you want it to!"

"PLEASE! JUST COME HOME, I WANT TO GO HOME!"

Gaster ignored his sons and pressed a button, the machine began to light up and a bright white portal opened, a rift in time. All Gaster would have to do was step though, grab seven souls and come back.

_He wanted to hug his sons. He wanted to tell them he loved them._

Papyrus screamed and summoned a blaster, bigger than he ever had before and he fired it at the wall of bones, they shattered. Sans ran forward. The machine sparked. Gaster stepped forward, one leg in the portal.

"Wait! Doctor, stop! The machine is malfunctioning, somethings wrong! I think there's a mistake in the code!" One of the Followers shouted.

Papyrus began to run forwards as well. Sans was close, too close. Gaster was halfway into the portal when he noticed it was in fact, malfunctioning. He had to get out and fix it and get back in but he couldn't move, something was pulling him in, the portal glitched and began to turn black. His one eye began to glow, flashing between purple and red as he tried to pull himself out of the rift.

Sans turned his father's soul blue, he was going to pull him out but The Void was pulling Gaster in. Wingdings Gaster had made a huge mistake.

Papyrus, standing further back than his brother also used blue magic on Gaster's soul. The two skelebros tried to pull their father back, they were not strong enough, they was just kids...

Gaster's Followers tried to turn the time machine off but nothing anyone was doing was helping, the machine was taking too much power from The Core, and could not be turned off; a safety measure that Gaster had taken so the rift would remain open so he wouldn't get stuck in the past, only he could override it.

Nothing could save Doctor W.D. Gaster.

_Gaster watched from the void he was now part of, or was going to be part of, he was't there yet but at the same time he was. He had always been part of the void, he had never been part of the void. He saw himself in the portal, he was splitting, he was shattering. He just wanted to go home. He hadn't apologised to his sons. Papyrus hadn't started school yet and Gaster wouldn't be there to take him, he wouldn't see his youngest grow up at all, he'd miss his whole life. He wouldn't see what a wonderful man he'd become. Sans wasn't a teenager yet, Gaster wouldn't be there for him in the hardest most confusing time of his life, he would never get to work with Sans in the labs again. He wouldn't see what a great scientist he'd become._ **_Gaster was alone... Again._**

The machine blew up. Gaster just managed to turn Sans's soul blue and push him away and onto Papyrus just in time. The force of the blast pushed four of the Followers and the portal with Gaster inside it into The Core.

Sans pulled himself up and off of Papyrus, the brothers ran to the side and looked over just in time to see their father's body and soul shatter into millions of pieces. The skelebros looked at each other in shock and horror, they had no idea what to do. They had just lost their father, their only parent, they were orphans just like that, so quickly.

Papyrus grabbed onto Sans's sleeve and pulled his brother close, neither brother could speak, they were in a shocked silence. That was until it hit them and they burst into tears and clung onto each other, holding on tightly.

They pulled away from each other when they noticed something weird. The world around them was now glitching, the remaining Followers were glitching, the brothers were glitching. Gaster was erased, the universe was trying to fix the hole with the information it had left, the universe was trying to fix itself by truly removing Gaster without causing more damage.

The skelebros were the only ones who seemed to notice.

"SANS, WHAT'S GOING ON?" Papyrus asked, he grabbed back onto his big brother and held on tight, burying his face into Sans's chest.

Sans held his little brother close as if he was trying to protect him but there was nothing to protect him from, people were disappearing, damage was being repaired. "i don't know... i... i'm scared."

Sans hoped to hear some confidant reassurance from his little bro, something about how The Great Papyrus would protect him, but, all he got was, "ME TOO, I'M SO SCARED. I WANT DADDY!"

Sans's terror doubled. He clung to Papyrus as if his life depended on it as the glitching got worse, everything around them was wrong. Everything was changing and the children were scared.

Suddenly everything stopped, the remaining Followers had disappeared and everything was quiet and still, the damage done was fixed and everything looked normal. Normal but wrong. The boys passed out on the floor inside The Core.

* * *

Asgore had no idea why he was walking to The Core after his court meeting. He felt it was important, like he had to do something important there, but he couldn't remember what it was. He figured he might as well take the walk anyway, there was nothing else to do and maybe he'd remember what it was once he got there and if not at least the walk would do him some good.

But it was bothering him. He _knew _he was forgetting something important... Was it the date? It's wasn't Toriel's or Asriel's birthdays, it wasn't his wedding anniversary, or the anniversary of Asriel's death, or his father's death, or his mother's death... Then what was it?

Had he promised to met a friend somewhere? That seemed like the most likely thing. But what friend? Gerson and Grillby were both busy with their businesses, couldn't be either of them. Undyne was visiting her aunt, couldn't be her. Alphys was helping her mother set up her new computer, couldn't be her. He'd just been in a meeting with the court members if it was one of them, they'd already be having tea. Something was missing... No, some_one_ was missing... Right?

Asgore shook his head, thinking about it didn't make it clearer, it only made it worse and it was giving him a headache. Maybe he had just dreamt that he had something important to do...

Either way he wasn't going to think about it. He hummed a tune as he walked though The Core, letting his mind wander. He'd water his flowers once he got back, then have a nice cup of tea, he should then maybe just start some paper work so he had less to do later, that sounded like a plan to him.

"HELP! SOMEONE PLEASE! ANYONE!"

Asgore froze. That sounded like a child calling for help but there shouldn't be children in The Core.

"PLEASE! I'M SCARED!"

Asgore was pulled out of his shock and his fatherly instincts cut in, he ran towards the sound of the child's cry.

He ran and came to a sliding halt once he saw the child that was crying out for help, he spotted two monsters there, both in stripes. They were skeleton children, one about five years old, sitting next to and shaking an older, unconscious child about twelve years old. Asgore was confused, he thought skeletons had been one of the many races of monster made extinct by the war and these two children were far too young to be survivors of the war. It was impossible for them to be there but they were. Still he had to do something to help them, it didn't look good...

"Howdy?" he said causing the little boy to jump and turn around.

"AH! ASGORE! THANK GOODNESS!" the youngest skeleton said, "I WAS SO SCARED!" he stood up and wiped away some of his tears only for more to fall. "YOU'VE GOT TO HELP MY BROTHER! HE WON'T WAKE UP..."

Millions of thoughts ran through the King's mind. He'd never seen this child in his life but the little boy knew his name. That, he supposed, wasn't that weird, he was the King after all, but the child addressed him so informally. Asgore did prefer to be addressed as such but this child couldn't know that. He supposed he was just a small child and didn't think about how one would typically address a king.

There were more important things to worry about right now. Like the older boy, Asgore feared the worst, he feared the child had fallen down. He didn't question how or why they were in The Core, those were questions for later. He ran towards the children and sat down, he had to check the older child's soul and HP...

"He's not fallen down, just unconscious," Asgore said with a sigh of relief and the child stopped crying with a sniff. "His max HP is so low, however."

The younger looked at Asgore, confused. "YEAH, SANS'S HP HAS ALWAYS BEEN LIKE THAT," the boy said it as though Asgore should already know that.

Asgore brushed it off and looked around, the older child was going to be fine despite the frighteningly low HP, the younger seemed shaken up and Asgore couldn't see any sign of their parents anywhere, surely they weren't alone...

"Where are you parents?" Asgore asked the little one, who instantly began to tear up again.

"DADDY IS... WE TRIED TO STOP HIM!" the child cried, "WE COULDN'T! HE... HE'S GONE! I WANT HIM BACK! I'M SCARED!"

Asgore tried to calm the child, he was clearly too emotional to tell him what happened but it sounded like they had just lost their father but Asgore still needed to find their mother.

"What about your mother? Where is she?"

The child looked at Asgore with his head tilted to the side like a puppy, tears running down his face. "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?"

Asgore frowned, he didn't understand why the little boy was so befuddled; the question was simple enough. "Your mother, little one. We need to find her."

"BUT ASGORE, WE DON'T HAVE A MUM. DADDY WAS OUR ONLY PARENT. I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY YOU ARE ASKING THAT."

Asgore was so bewildered, he tired to think of everything he knew about these kids. They were in The Core, the eldest was unconscious, the youngest in a state of panic, their father had very recently died and they didn't have a mother. Skeletons were meant to be extinct yet here were two children... It didn't make any sense. It was as if these two children had appeared from nowhere and this boy was acting so familiar with him...

Asgore decided to change the subject. "Alright, well we'll worry about that later. What's your name, little one?"

"HUH?" the child seemed to be becoming even more confused and he asked slowly, "YOU... DON'T REMEMBER US?"

Asgore, in turn, was also becoming even more confused. "We're met? I'm sorry, little one but I think I would remember meeting a child of an extinct race. I don't understand how you are even here."

The little child seemed to be thinking and the more he thought the more he seemed to panic. "HE'S NOT DEAD... HE... OH... HE WAS ERASED FROM TIME... SANS KNOWS MORE ABOUT THIS THAN ME... HE WAS ERASED FROM TIME AND NO ONE REMEMBERS HIM OR... OR US...?" the child was muttering to himself and Asgore was all the more confused and concerned for the child.

This child seemed to know him and know him well, was Asgore really forgetting someone...?

_"ASGORE! HELP ME! ...NO... NO, HELP THEM! PLEASE! KEEP MY BOYS SAFE!" **[Retracted.]** called out from the Void but Asgore couldn't hear him. His boys couldn't hear him. "PLEASE! AT LEAST REMEMBER THEM! HELP THEM!"_

The child shook his head and looked up at Asgore. "IT'S OKAY IF YOU CAN'T REMEMBER. I'M THE GREAT PAPYRUS! THIS IS MY LAZY BROTHER COMIC SANS! WE JUST CALL HIM SANS THOUGH. WE'RE THE SONS OF... WE'RE ORPHANS." Papyrus didn't know why he said that last part, he wanted to say 'we're the sons of Doctor Gaster,' there was something stopping him from saying his name.

Asgore smiled at the little boy and stood up. "Alright then, Papyrus, if you have nowhere to go, I'll take you to the castle. We'll find out what's wrong with your brother and then we'll figure things out from there."

Papyrus nodded and Asgore picked up the older child; Sans. Then offered his hand to Papyrus, who took it. Together they went back to the castle. Asgore knew they couldn't stay at the castle but he'd find somewhere for them to go. He didn't know why but he knew he cared deeply for these children and he didn't want them to be sad.


	17. [Retracted]

Dark, darker, yet darker...

Darkest.

It was the darkest darkness Wingdings Gaster had ever know.

He floated in it, cold and alone. Like how he'd been just after the war but this time there was no warm light of a teenage fire elemental, there wasn't the comfort of the King and Queen.

He really was alone. He'd lost everything.

He'd been so happy with his sons, why hadn't he just accepted the miracles? Why did he have to want more?

All it was, was dark and quiet.

How long had it been...? A hundred years? A million years? No, it had only been a second? A week? He didn't know.

He wanted his boys.

He was floating in nothingness. He was everywhere and nowhere. He was a million pieces, yet he was whole.

The emptiness was driving him mad.

Black, dark, white, black, dark, white, black... Cold.

Yet even though all it was, was darkness, he saw everything. He saw Asgore find his children. He saw his old family die. He saw Sans trying so hard to take care of Papyrus. He saw his sons as adults; Sans a sentry, Papyrus a Royal Guard in training. He saw himself surrounded by his niblings as he read to them. He saw Papyrus's first day of school, he saw himself as a child running around with his siblings, he saw Sans's twenty first birthday where he got shit-faced at Grillby's, he saw sixteen year old Sans working three jobs to keep Papyrus living happily. He saw his sons' births. He saw himself at school as bullies surrounded him and began calling him names. He saw the battlefield, he saw himself waking up in the makeshift hospital after the war. He saw his sons living happily, he saw them living in misery.

He saw his boys' whole lives, he saw his own past but it was out of order and hard to keep track of, so confusing, Gaster gave up trying to make sense of it all.

Things began repeating, he kept seeing the same things over and over again.

He saw a golden flower. He saw that flower kill but who he killed Gaster couldn't tell; it was surrounded in darkness. He saw the flower make friends, he saw it kill... There was something about it that reminded him of Prince Asriel but Asriel was not a killer, it was weird. He didn't like it. He wanted it to stop doing whatever it was it was doing. He wanted it to stop resetting the world. He wanted it all to stop, he wanted to stop seeing the same things over and over, he wanted to die. He couldn't.

The void weakened ever so slightly...

"_After all, it's rude to talk about someone who's listening._"

Gaster flinched at the sound; that was one of his Followers, one who fell with him...

If they were here they could help each other, they could escape, right? He needed to find them.

He wanted to go to the source of the sound but it was impossible, the laws of physics didn't apply here. There were others trapped with him but they'd never see each other.

He saw the human.

They stopped the flower. They freed everyone.

Gaster felt so relived, his sons got to the surface. They got to see it, they were all free and there was peace between monsters and humans. Gaster felt all his regrets lift away, his sons could be happy, everything was okay and if they were happy, he was happy, it didn't matter if he was trapped in here, his sons were happy.

The human reset...

_"W-WELL, THAT'S NOT WHAT I EXPECTED... BUT... ST... STILL! I BELIEVE IN YOU! YOU CAN DO A LITTLE BETTER! EVEN IF YOU DON'T THINK SO! I... I PROMISE..._ "

The human killed Papyrus...

Gaster screamed, he let out attacks at nothing, he could not kill the human for what they had done, he couldn't make them pay but he wanted to, oh how he wanted to. He wanted them to suffer for killing his child. He could not for he was trapped.

He mourned, he was in so much pain, he lost everything, his child couldn't die... Not sweat little Papyrus... He'd never hurt anyone in his life, he didn't deserve it. He could not believe what was happening, all was lost. He'd failed as a scientist, that was painful but not as painful as how he'd failed as a father. It was his fault his sweat Papyrus died, he should have protected him.

Gaster's rage and pain was uncontrollable, he felt it would've consumed his soul if he still had one that was whole. He wanted out, he'd make that human pay. They killed his child, he'd lost more, he was even more alone.

"_... ... ... so... guess that's it, huh? ... just... don't say i didn't warn you. welp. i'm going to grillby's. papyrus, do you want anything?"_

Gaster cried out, this couldn't be happening, it couldn't, not his babies, not his boys. This was exactly what he wanted to stop. It was all his fault, if he only listened to his sons and stopped. His sons died because of him. He really was a terrible person. He could have stopped this...

He was angry, so angry. He wanted his sons back, he needed them, they were all he had. He was once again the last of his kind and the pain was so much worse this time; he'd lost his own children.

The human reset once again.

Again and again, pacifist, neutral, genocide. They wouldn't stop resetting, even the pacifist was too painful; knowing it would all reset again anyway and his boys' happiness would be short lived. Their happiness would be stripped away for nothing more than a human child's whim all because they were bored. They played with people's lives as if they were toys.

Gaster could do nothing to stop it. Nothing.

He saw everything again and again, everything the human did, everything the flower did, everything that happened before the human, never anything after.

It was an anomaly, it was forever.

Wingdings Gaster stood in The Void, screaming and crying and with a blaster firing... **He wanted out.**


	18. Two Skeleton Orphans

Sans woke up in a bed that wasn't his own. He stared at the ceiling trying to make sense of what was happening. His father fell into The Core... No he fell into the portal...

Sans lay unmoving, he didn't want to get up, he didn't want to face reality. He didn't know what to do. Where would he and Papyrus go? How was he meant to take care of a five year old? Was it possible to get his father back?

It all seemed easier to just give up. His dad was gone, he couldn't take care of Papyrus, he should just give it all up.

He closed his eyes. He wanted to fall down. He was losing HOPE. He was going to fall down.

"SANS!" Papyrus called out, he gently placed his hands on Sans's shoulders and shook him. "ARE YOU AWAKE? PLEASE! I DIDN'T WANT TO BE ALONE!"

_he'll do fine without me..._ Sans just wanted to die, he couldn't save his father so what good was he to his brother? _he doesn't need me..._

"SANS! JUST WAKE UP, YOU... YOU... LAZYBONES!" Papyrus was shouting. Was Sans's condition really that bad? "BROTHER, PLEASE, I NEED YOU!"

_no, he doesn't. i'm better off dead..._

"JUST STOP! STOP WITH THIS! HP GOING UP AND DOWN JUST STOP! DON'T FALL! PLEASE!" Papyrus was getting louder and Sans felt a tear drip onto his cheek.

_aww jeez, i'm making him cry... i'm a horrible brother._

Sans kept slipping. He was slowly loosing HP and then slowly regaining it ever since Asgore brought them to the castle. It was like Sans couldn't decide whether to live or die and there was nothing Papyrus could do to stop his brother from falling down but he wasn't going to give up, he couldn't.

"SANS WHY WOULDN'T YOU JUST GET UP?"

Sans just wanted Papyrus to leave so he could die. He'd given up but he didn't want to turn to dust in front of his brother, his HP was sitting at 0.5/1, this time was it. He was either going to die or wake. Sans thought that Papyrus should just move on and leave him to dust alone, he didn't know what to do if he stayed.

"... IS IT BECAUSE YOU'RE _BONE TIRED?"_

"heh... heh heh..."

_no don't laugh, idiot. just die. dust already that's all you're good for. you failed to save dad._

But it was just so unexpected, Sans couldn't help but laugh, the joke was hilarious and it was the last thing he expected from _Papyrus _of all people since he hated puns. The fact his little brother make the joke was funnier to Sans than the joke itself and the joke was really funny. Sans woke up and couldn't stop laughing.

Sans sat up, still giggling and wiped a tear of laughter from of eye. Papyrus lightly punched his arm, "OKAY, BROTHER, YOU CAN STOP LAUGHING NOW! IT'S WASN'T EVEN FUNNY!"

"it was your joke!" He couldn't stop the laughter.

"AND PART OF MY SOUL DIED SAYING IT! I CAN'T _BELIEVE _YOU WOULD ONLY WAKE UP BECAUSE OF A JOKE! I WAS REALLY SCARED! YOU ALMOST _DIED! _LOOK AT YOUR HP!" Papyrus scolded him and Sans was hit again.

Sans managed to stop laughing and hugged Papyrus tightly, "i'm so sorry, bro. for everything. i'm so sorry. oh god i'm sorry!"

Sans couldn't believe he was ready to accept death. Papyrus may be better off without him but they were brothers and Papyrus needed Sans, it was selfish of Sans to want to die and he felt guilty. Their dad was gone and Sans needed to be there for his little brother. He was his only family, the only other one left of their race.

"SANS?" Papyrus asked pulling away from his brother.

"yeah, papy?"

"YOU... YOU REMEMBER DAD, RIGHT?" Papyrus was shaking.

Sans frowned at Papyrus, what a weird question. "of course i do. why wouldn't i?"

Papyrus looked away from him. "BECAUSE NO ONE ELSE DOES. EVERYONE FORGOT HIM AND US AND I DON'T KNOW HOW TO EXPLAIN WHERE WE CAME FROM. NO ONE WILL BELIEVE THAT A ROYAL SCIENTIST WHO DOESN'T EXIST CREATED US IN A LAB, ALONE. WE CAN'T EVEN LIE AND SAY OUR PARENTS DIED BECAUSE THERE ARE NO OTHER SKELETONS, IT'S LIKE WE JUST APPEARED FROM NOWHERE TO THEM..."

Sans looked shocked for a moment and took a deep breath. "dad's... not dead... he's alive, right?"

Papyrus nodded, slowly. "I THINK SO... I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT HAPPENED."

Sans looked away as well, this was too much but he couldn't go back into that half fallen down state again. "he shattered himself across time and space, he didn't die but he was erased. everything he did was erased to stop a paradox," Sans explained to his brother.

"BUT WHAT ABOUT US AND THE CORE? IF DAD NEVER EXISTED, THEN WE SHOULDN'T EITHER."

"we can't be erased without causing more harm. same with the core and i'm sure there is more of dad's work that still exists. people's memories were altered to amend things. i'm sure that's what happened."

"SO, AS FAR AS EVERYONE'S CONCERNED, WE JUST RANDOMLY CAME INTO EXISTENCE."

"yeah... let's just keep our past quiet. let people just think it's too traumatising to talk about or something. trying to tell the truth might be a bad idea."

Papyrus nodded, "YEAH, AS MUCH AS I HATE LYING, WE DON'T WANT TO MESS ANYTHING UP IF WE'RE PARADOXES."

"ok. now we need to figure out what we're going to do... and i think i need some healing."

Papyrus fidgeted a little before he reached forward and began using green magic on his big brother, trying his hardest to get back the 0.5 HP he lost. "IF DAD'S NOT DEAD... CAN WE BRING HIM BACK?" He asked as he worked.

Sans shrugged, "_tibia _honest, bro, i don't know. i can try. if it is possible it won't be easy."

Papyrus nodded and took Sans's hand, using more magic to heal him. It wasn't easy to heal someone with so little HP and even harder when they had lost hope. "WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T DO ANYTHING DANGEROUS! I DON'T WANT TO LOSE YOU AS WELL!"

"i won't, bro. you're the most important thing and my top priority. but i'll try to get dad back as well."

"GOOD... WAIT, BROTHER WAS THAT A PUN!?" Papyrus pulled away his hands and his magic faded. Sans's HP sat at 0.8/1.

Sans giggled and pat Papyrus's head. "took ya long enough to notice."

"YOU ARE THE WORST! THIS IS REALLY SERIOUS!" Papyrus shouted as he beat his brother's chest with his fists.

Sans just laughed and grabbed Papyrus's wrists to stop his brother from hitting him and pushed Papyrus back, only to be tackled. They began play fighting and soon Papyrus was laughing as well, for a moment things seemed normal.

"Howdy!" Asgore walked into the room as the boys were rough housing, "oh, I see you are awake! That's wonderful, how are you feeling?"

Sans looked up at Asgore in surprise. He had been so concerned with Papyrus he forgot to ask where he was. Now he knew exactly where he was and he was so happy to see one of his father's best friends and it took everything he had not to go and hug Asgore. After all Asgore wouldn't remember him. "oh... um, i'm fine. you helped my lil bro? thank you."

Asgore smiled at the boys kindly. "You are quite welcome. It was no trouble, really. I can't just leave two orphans alone in The Core."

Sans stood up and tired to straighten out his clothes. Asgore didn't know him, he had to act right in front of him because he wasn't his father's best friend whom Sans had known since infancy, he was the King and Sans was just a random orphan.

He bowed to him, it felt wrong to act this way when he knew how much Asgore didn't like the formalities but he'd have no way of knowing that, being some kid from the streets. "no really, thank you so much, your majesty. you didn't have to do anything for the likes of us."

Asgore put his hands up, "please, there is no need for that. I just want to do the right thing, you do not need to stand on ceremony!"

Sans stood up, thankful Asgore had stopped him so quickly, it was so weird to act like a stranger to someone he knew so well. "so," he said, feeling very awkward, "what's going to happen to me and pap?"

Papyrus had also stood up and was clinging to Sans. Sans put an arm around his brother, protectively. He didn't want to be sent to an orphanage where they were likely to be separated due to their wide age gap.

Asgore sighed and took a seat on the nearby chair and motioned for the boys to sit as well. They didn't. "We need to talk about that. Do you have any relatives anywhere? I mean, I thought there were no more skeletons left but there must be if you two are here. Are they hiding somewhere for some reason?"

Sans shook his head, "um... our dad just died. we're the last. i won't let anyone take papyrus away from me." Sans held onto his brother tighter.

"No one will. We just want to help you boys. If you don't have any family what about family friends? Is there any of your parents' friends who could help you?"

Sans looked to the floor, all of his father's friends wouldn't remember them, Asgore didn't, the remaining Followers wouldn't, even Grillby wouldn't and Sans spent a lot of time at his bar. He slowly shook his head.

"SANS," Papyrus spoke, voice shacking, "SANS, I WANT TO GO HOME!"

Sans looked to his brother as he felt a sharp pain in his chest. He still hadn't had a chance to mourn and he was beginning to realise just how much he'd lost. "i don't think we can, bro."

Asgore looked thoughtful, "where is your home?"

"SNOWDIN," Papyrus said.

"Snowdin...? I go there often; great bar there, owned by a friend. You lived in the town?"

"uh... yeah," Sans didn't know what to do but if they could somehow get back to their house... maybe there'd be something there, a clue, some of his father's notes and research. That was if their house was still there and providing it didn't belong to someone else.

"Do you have a key to your house?"

Sans shook his head, "dad had the only key," he could shortcut inside but he felt like he maybe shouldn't let Asgore know he could do that, it wasn't a skeleton power and they were weird enough already. Besides if it was inhabited by other people that would cause a lot of problems. "he had it in his pocket when he fell in..."

"MAYBE WE CAN JUST GO TO SNOWDIN?" Papyrus asked.

"maybe..." Sans muttered as he put his free hand into his striped hoodie's pocket. He frowned, his pocket's were meant to be empty but there was something there, something metal. He pulled it out; their house key with a photo frame key chain that contained a photo of seven year old Sans holding newborn Papyrus. "ok... that's weird."

Papyrus gasped, "YOU HAVE THE KEY! WE CAN GO HOME!"

Asgore frowned, "that's all well and good but I simply cannot allow two children to live alone, especially when you were on the verge of falling-"

"we'll be fine," Sans was excited, there could be something there and he had no idea why he had the key, he definitely didn't have it before, there had to be a reason he had it now. They wouldn't need to worry about being alone if he could bring back his father. He made sure he had a good hold on Papyrus and smiled at Asgore. "thanks, asgore, but we better get going. see ya later." With that he teleported away.

* * *

Their house was exactly how they left it. But before they could do anything Sans got an earful from Papyrus about how he can't just teleport away from Asgore while he was talking to them and trying to help them. Then he got another scolding about how he shouldn't use magic like that when he wasn't at full HP.

Papyrus then fully healed Sans before they got to work searching the house for any clues on how to get _him_ back.

There was nothing.

There were notes and formals, sure, but nothing important, no clues. Sans figured anything big and important was at the labs but he still wanted to search the house properly first. So the brothers spend the whole day desperately looking for anything that might help them, they came up with nothing. Sans eventually decided to put Papyrus to bed, he had to fight with him to get him to go but he did eventually agree and left.

Sans to, went to bed, but he couldn't sleep. He just wanted his dad back. After two hours of tossing and turning he got up and went into his father's room. It used to be so well organised but once the boys got to it... well, they made a mess, desperately trying to find _something, anything _but they found nothing.

Sans sat down at the small desk in the corner and turned on the computer, maybe there was something on there. Most of the files were glitching and corrupted, unless. Sans opened his father's emails. There wasn't much and his email address and the addresses of the senders were blank. All except a one, a email from the bank, curious, Sans opened it.

He cried.

His father had been putting money in bank accounts in Sans and Papyrus's names for a long time. They had one each, Sans's starting a few days after he was born and Papyrus's starting on the day he was born. Sans had more money than his brother did since his was started seven years before Papyrus's but it would end up the same because it seemed money was still going in. Their college funds, probably and Sans never even knew he had them... They couldn't access it until they were eighteen but there was so much money in there, his father had been rich, of course he would be giving them a lot of money and that money was collecting interest.

Sans realised he wouldn't see a lot of his father's money, he had the money in his college fund but he'd never get his inheritance, how would he claim it? His father never existed in the first place, he couldn't go to the bank or a lawyer and demand inheritance from a man who didn't exist.

Sans also realised that he would have to worry about money now that his father was gone. He never had to worry about money and prices before. He knew that he was spoilt, anything he wanted he got, sure he had an allowance but if there ever was something he wanted and couldn't afford, his father just gave him more. Now, however, daddy wasn't there to pay for them... and once the cash in the house was spent...

Sans shook his head. He was worrying about it now, he had to find all the cash he had. He had to make sure he and Papyrus would be okay, he had to make sure they could pay for food and pay the bills. He'd have to wait six years before he got access to his bank account and he was worried that in that time the bank would notice there were two accounts getting money from nowhere and assume it was a glitch or a scam...

He'd have to budget, only buy the cheapest food and use things like water sparingly, only wash clothes when they got really dirty, maybe try to convince Papyrus to shower with him so they weren't wasting the water... Maybe Sans could skip meals so they wouldn't have to buy so much food... He could always eat from the trash and only feed Papyrus with the fresh food. If they could get away with sitting in the dark they should, he should try to get food that didn't need to be cooked...

He'd have to get a job but there was child labour laws, he was twelve, maybe he could get a paper round... but that wouldn't pay a lot, he could do odd jobs around town, clear pathways from the snow for the elderly, things like that. If he got desperate he could beg on the streets of New Home. He might even have to drop out of school. His father would hate that. School was free but he had to make money, he couldn't be spending time at school when he could be making money.

This was a mess...

He just wanted Papyrus to be happy. He decided then that he would do anything for his brother, anything. He'd work hard, he'd stop being lazy, he'd do hard manual labour if it meant Papyrus could still go to school, if it meant Papyrus could still have a normal life. He was all that mattered and Sans had to live for him.

"shit..." Sans muttered and lent back on the chair, "you just had to fuck with time and space, didn't you old man? what a mess..."

It really would be easier to give up but he had Papyrus to care for. He could give up once Papyrus was grown up and could care for himself but right now he had a small child to protect.

"SANS?"

Sans jumped and turned around to see his brother standing in the doorway wearing his scarf and with a matching red blanket wrapped around him. "what is it, bro? shouldn't you be asleep?"

"SHOULDN'T YOU?"

"can't."

"YEAH... ME TOO..." Papyrus walked into the room and stood next to Sans. "CAN YOU READ ME A BEDTIME STORY? DADDY USED TO ALWAYS READ TO ME AND I CAN'T SLEEP WITHOUT IT."

Sans nodded and forced a smile. "ok, what do you want me to read?"

* * *

Papyrus woke up on the sofa the next morning. He was cuddled up next to his brother who was still sound asleep. After the story they still couldn't get to sleep so they moved to the sofa and put on a movie, they must have fallen asleep halfway through it as the TV was still on, the film was long finished.

Papyrus looked up at his lazy, sleeping brother. Having him was a huge comfort to Papyrus. He may just be a little kid but Papyrus wasn't stupid, he was smarter than most children his age. Papyrus knew they'd struggle, Papyrus knew they had to be sparing with money and food but Papyrus knew there was nothing he could do to help. Sans was twelve he _might_ be able to get a job, a five year old defiantly couldn't.

Papyrus got up, if he couldn't help make money, he'd cook and clean so Sans didn't have another thing to worry about. He walked into the kitchen, he'd make his brother some breakfast. There was a problem, however; Papyrus couldn't reach to counter. That wasn't going to stop The Great Papyrus! He pulled out a kitchen chair and moved it over to where the kettle was, climbed up and grabbed it, got off the chair and used blue magic on the chair to move it towards the sink. He then got back onto the chair and filled the kettle before getting off again and using magic to get the chair back so he could put the kettle on. Next he took the chair over to the toaster and bread, he put two pieces in the toaster, one for each of them, and put that on as well. So far, so good.

Papyrus turned again to get off the chair, he was still wrapped in the blanket and it tangled at his feet as he turned and when he went to get off of the chair he slipped...

"AH!" Papyrus screamed, closed his eyes and braced himself to hit the floor hard, but he never did, he did feel a heavy pressure on his soul though. Opening his eyes slowly, he looked around and saw Sans standing next to him, with his soul, turned blue, in his hand and one eye glowing.

Sans gently lowered his brother onto the floor and let out a sigh of relief. "what where you thinking? you could've gotten badly hurt! idiot!" Sans snapped harshly in shock.

Papyrus, realising he was in trouble shifted from one foot to the other. "I'M SORRY, I JUST WANTED TO MAKE BREAKFAST."

Sans took a deep breath, letting go of the anger he felt. He didn't want to be angry with his brother, he was just stressed and scared and the last thing he wanted was Papyrus to be hurt. "it's ok, bro, just don't do that again, it's not safe. if i wasn't there you could've broken a bone... man, dad would've flipped if he saw you pull a stunt like that. probably wouldn't stop fussing over you for weeks after."

"MM HMM," Papyrus muttered, "HE REALLY WOULD'VE. I'M SORRY."

Sans pulled Papyrus in for a tight hug, "next time you get hungry just ask me, ok? i'll make you something."

Papyrus didn't know how Sans would react if he told him he wasn't making breakfast for himself so he decided not to say anything about it, instead he said, "I CAN MAKE FOOD MYSELF."

"course you can, you are the great papyrus! you're just not tall enough to reach the counter, shorty!"

Papyrus huffed, "OH YEAH! WELL JUST YOU WAIT UNTIL I GET GROWTH SPURTS! I'M GONNA BE TALLER THAN YOU ONE DAY!"

Sans laughed, "i know. i'm real short for my age, always have been, always will. you'll easily outgrow me but for right now, you are smol!" Sans then booped his brother's nose.

"STOP MAKING FUN OF ME!" Papyrus called as he stomped his foot.

"aww, sorry bro. look why don't you sit down, i'll finish up making breakfast."

Papyrus sighed and nodded, going over and sitting down at the kitchen table and watched as Sans worked. He just wanted to help, he wanted to grow up faster so he could.

Sans got to work, he spread the toast and cut each slice into four triangles, then put it in front of Papyrus. He already decided he wouldn't have anything to eat to save the food for Papyrus. He then poured his brother a glass of milk before he went over to the kettle. There was a box of coffee next to it, it was mainly their father's but Sans was beginning to like it, Papyrus hated the stuff. Sans figured he might as well use it up. He'd use it sparingly so he wouldn't miss it too much once it was finished, after all coffee was a luxury, he didn't need it so he wouldn't buy it. He made himself a cup of coffee.

He sat down with only his mug and look a sip. Papyrus hadn't started eating yet, Sans frowned, "what's wrong?"

"ARE YOU NOT EATING ANYTHING, BROTHER?"

"i'm not hungry. i'm good with just the coffee."

Papyrus didn't seem to like that answer, "BUT DADDY ALWAYS SAID BREAKFAST WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT MEAL OF THE DAY! YOU SHOULD EAT SOMETHING."

"nah, it's alright. i'm just not hungry, maybe i'll have something later."

Papyrus wasn't stupid, he knew what Sans was doing, they didn't have access to a lot of money because they were kids. Sans was trying to ration food by not eating. Papyrus didn't want him to do that, he'd rather just have smaller portions and spilt everything equally but he knew Sans was stubborn and wouldn't accept the half of Papyrus's breakfast that he had planned on giving to Sans in the first place.

Papyrus had an idea, he began to eat. Sans was trying to ration the food, he'd never let any go to waste. Papyrus ate four triangles and looked at the next slice. It was too obvious if he offered a whole piece of bread so he picked up the next triangle and tried to make it look like he was struggling to finish it but he did and even took one small bite out of the next one as well before he looked up at Sans trying to look guilty.

"I'M SORRY, SANS BUT I DON'T THINK I CAN FINISH THIS."

Sans looked at his brother and put down his coffee. "really?"

"I'M NOT REALLY THAT HUNGRY. I'M SORRY, YOU CAN FINISH IT IF YOU WANT TO."

"you can't even eat one more slice?"

Papyrus shook his head, "YOU CAN HAVE IT OR JUST THROW IT OUT."

Sans sighed and took the plate, he looked down at it and back at Papyrus. Sans ate the toast.

It was going to be hard without their father but they'd manage somehow, they had to. Sans would keep looking for a way to bring him back but first he had to find a way to make money. He had no pride unlike his father and brother, he wasn't above begging and dumpster diving but those were a last resort. He'd have to get Papyrus enrolled in school as well since their records were most likely erased. Sans knew that if he was to go back to school he'd no longer have skipped a grade, which meant he'd be repeating a year anyway, the year he was technically meant to be. Not like he planned on going to school.

He got up and smiled at his brother, "welp, i'm going out to see if i can find a job or something. be careful and don't hurt yourself while i'm gone. call me if something happens."

"YES, BROTHER! I'LL KEEP LOOKING FOR ANYTHING THAT MIGHT HELP US FIND DAD!"

The brothers hugged and parted ways for the day. Everything was different and the skelebros hated it. They were both really depressed and trying there best to hide it from each other. They had to be the other's strength.

_Gaster watched from the void, screaming. Trying to warn them of what was to come._


	19. Struggling and Searching

It was so hard for the boys. They couldn't find anything that might help them free their father in the house and Sans was far too busy trying to make money to go and have a proper look in the labs.

No one wanted to employ a twelve year old with one HP who appeared out of nowhere. To everyone Sans and Papyrus had just sort of showed up and asserted themselves and since no one would employ a weak child, money ran out fast.

Sans went begging, any money he got he spent on Papyrus, Sans made do with eating out of the trash and occasionally Papyrus would sit Sans down and force him to eat regular bought food. Papyrus was very worried about Sans and he didn't want him getting sick from eating dirty food. The whole thing was taking a toll on them both. They were depressed and Sans was worried for Papyrus; he wasn't his normal, happy, bouncy self. It was as if all the joy was sucked right out of him although he still tried to act the same. Sans just wanted to see his little brother truly happy again.

Sans walked to Grillby's late at night, Papyrus was asleep and Sans was hungry. Really hungry. He hadn't eaten in a while, it'd been months since his father had 'died' and Sans was growing more and more depressed. He tried to think of good things, like how Papyrus was going school and doing so well there, or how they hadn't ever gotten a bill for water or power, most likely Asgore's doing.

Sans missed Asgore, he hadn't seen him since he rescued them, he had came once to check in on them but Sans assured him they were fine and Asgore clearly didn't want to push. Unfortunately he had no reason to go to visit the King and Asgore seemed to get the idea that the boys wanted to be left alone. Sans hadn't seen any of his father's Followers either or Grillby, despite the elemental living so close. Sans was avoiding him, it was upsetting to see old friends who had forgotten him and it was hard to act like a stranger to people he used to know, it was hard not to mention something about their lives he shouldn't know and it'd only be harder to be around someone he knew well, like Grillby.

He went to Grillby's but didn't go in. Instead he went around the back to the trash. He knew Grillby threw out food waste in a bag with nothing else in it, so it should be safe to eat, although it would be cold. If he was lucky Grillby would've just taken out the trash and it might still be warm.

He had no such luck but beggars couldn't be choosers, in Sans's case that was literal. He began to dig through for anything he could eat, knowing he had to be quick.

He had barely started when he heard a door open and he froze.

"...Hey! What are you doing?"

Sans jumped, Grillby was taking out the trash and he was caught red handed. He'd been caught digging through people's trash before in New Home, and every time he was yelled at and sometimes threatened, he didn't want to see Grillby like that. He didn't want to see Grillby at all. He turned slowly, keeping his head down at the ground but he could still see the light coming off of the elemental.

"i'm sorry, sir," he had to be polite, he had to seem smaller and weaker than he was, maybe then he could get some sympathy. He couldn't shortcut away either, because he lived in Snowdin so Grillby would just find him. He knew that Grillby probably wouldn't be that mad but he probably wouldn't want him digging through his trash and besides if Sans acted relaxed like he knew Grillby was _chill_ he'd come off as arrogant. He had to think about how a normal orphan would act in front of a stranger who caught them dumpster diving. "i'm just really hungry, and i've got a little brother to feed. i'll leave and not bother you."

Sans turned to walk away, head still down but he felt something warm around his wrist. He flinched and looked at the flaming hand holding his arm. Was Grillby actually mad? Surely Grillby wouldn't hurt him, he was one the kindest people Sans knew or well, used to know.

He turned and looked up at Grillby, the fire elemental looked worried, he opened his mouth but seemed to change his mind and let go of Sans so he could sign.

_"you're that skeleton orphan people have been talking about."_

Sans nodded, he didn't know what to say, "i am sorry. i know you probably don't want me around. i won't come back." He tried to walk away again.

"... No! Wait!" Grillby called out and when Sans turned Grillby began to sign again. _"If you're hungry you don't have to dig through garbage. I can make you something if you want?"_

Sans frowned, confused, "i ain't got any money. that's why i'm eating from the trash."

_"That's okay. You're just a child, no child should go hungry, that's just not right. I don't mind giving you food for free."_

"but... you run a business, right? surely you can't just go out giving away food."

_"Feeding two children every now and then is not going to put me out of business."_

Sans still hesitated, he didn't know if it was really okay, he didn't want to trouble Grillby.

The elemental sighed, _"look, if you really feel bad about accepting charity, how about we just start a tab?_ _You don't even have to worry about paying it back but if you ever do get the money you can."_

Sans couldn't really argue with that and he really was starving, he hadn't had a proper meal in ages, especially Grillby's. "alright, thank you so much."

Grillby smiled and held the door open for Sans, gesturing for him to enter, _"don't mention it," _Grillby signed once they were inside, _"I'm Grillby, by the way."_

Sans nodded and replied, "comic sans g-... the skeleton. just call me sans." What? That wasn't what he was meant to say... He was going to introduce himself with his surname, he was going to say 'comic sans gaster' but something stopped him. His father was erased, Sans couldn't say his name, first or last. He felt the need to remind himself of his own name and yelled it in his mind; Comic Sans Gaster, his brother was Papyrus Gaster, his father was Doctor Wingdings Gaster, he was a Gaster.

Grillby didn't seem to notice his panic, _"nice to meet you, Sans," _he signed with a smile and offered his hand.

Now that was the distraction Sans needed. He slipped his hand into his pocket before he took Grillby's offered hand.

PPPPppppfffffffffttttttttt...

Grillby looked shocked and Sans burst out laughing.

"oh my god!" Sans giggled, "i cannot believe that actually worked! i mean i just found this in the trash yesterday, thought it might be funny to prank my bro but man, i think a whoopee cushion in the hand might be my new favourite trick! look at your face!"

Grillby stayed stunned and Sans began to worry he really did piss him off and that the free food deal was gone but just as Sans was about to turn to leave Grillby burst out laughing.

"...Oh wow! That was actually really funny!" Grillby said after he stopped laughing.

"really?"

Grillby nodded and began to sign again, _"yeah, really immature but funny. Took me by surprise there."_

"heh, thanks. i'm a real _hot_ comedian, my jokes are going to be real _flameous _one day. i was just _burn _to be funny so you can't really _flame _me for it. to stop me from making jokes would be_ blazephemy, _even if it is a bit _match, _my bro really _heats _me for it sometimes but he still _lavas _me._"_

Grillby was laughing again he seemed to really enjoy the fire puns but he had to put a stop to them, he invited the child in to feed him, not to mess around. "...Sans, please... That's enough."

"aww, you don't want me to _fire _out some more?"

Grillby laughed again, "... you really are one funny kid... let's get you fed."

* * *

After that things really began to get better. Grillby hated seeing children suffer, he'd had a rough childhood and he didn't want to see kids do something as extreme as he did. He began to feed the skelebros regularly and when Papyrus complained about the food being too greasy, Grillby went out and bought non-greasy food specifically for Papyrus. Sans had scolded Papyrus for complaining telling him that free food was free food and he shouldn't be ungrateful but Grillby didn't mind, he knew some people didn't like greasy food and he was more than happy to at least try to give the little kid something he liked.

Grillby didn't know why but he cared for the brothers. They seemed so familiar to him, like they were old friends but that was impossible. He tired to push the thought out of his mind, he was just happy he was able to help the two orphans.

When Sans really began to struggle, Grillby gave him a job. He couldn't serve customers alcohol as he was underage and there were laws against that but Sans could still wash dishes part time, which was also good for Grillby as he didn't need to worry about getting wet and hurting himself. Grillby payed generously and gave him lots of breaks, he still gave him free food as well. The elemental quickly became good friends with Sans.

With his job at Grillby's and the other odd jobs Sans did every now and then he was beginning to live more comfortably and he finally had time to go to the labs.

* * *

There was no Royal Scientist, the labs were dark and unused but that didn't stop Sans, he turned on the lights and began to explore. He hoped he'd find something, it'd been a year since the accident and Sans missed his father so much, he didn't even care about getting to the surface anymore, he just wanted his dad so he searched and searched but there was nothing.

The labs were empty. Everything was erased. He kept looking until he found something. Blueprints, for the DT Extractor and for the Time Machine... He could rebuild the machine and use the very thing that tore his father apart to bring him back but that was really dangerous, if he failed then he to would be shattered. He promised Papyrus he wouldn't do anything dangerous but Sans hated that promise, he couldn't keep it. He wasn't going to keep it, he had to try, it was the only way to save him. Sans folded up the blueprints and put them in his pocket. Even if he shattered it'd be okay as long as he got his father back or as long as Papyrus's memory of him was erased... It was all for Papyrus, Sans didn't matter to himself.

Something caught his eye, pulling him out of his self destructive thoughts. It was his father's old badge, (the picture gone and name scratched out,) and the pictures, the ones that had 'Don't Forget' written on them... Sans picked them up and looked at them, the one of Sans and the Followers seemed to be in fairly good condition, he looked so happy in the picture, he missed those times, life was so much easier and happier... But the part with his father's face was burnt off... Sans hated it, he just wanted to see him, he'd do anything to see him again.

"H-hello? Is a-anyone here?"

Sans jumped and hid under a table as he heard Alphys walk through the labs, he had no idea what she was doing here, she shouldn't be here...

"T-that's w-weird... no one's here. W-why are the lights o-on then..."

Sans watched from where he was hiding as she shook her head and began to look around much like Sans's had been. He didn't understand why she was here, she was five years older than him which would make her eighteen right now, surely she had better things to be doing, like studying for university, she shouldn't be sneaking around the labs like a misbehaving kid.

Sans figured he should leave but just before he had to chance to shortcut away Alphys dropped her phone, the devise slipping from her claws as she pulled it out her pocket to answer some text. She let out a surprised yelp and bend down to pick it up and saw Sans under the table and screamed, falling backwards onto her butt.

"oops, sorry," Sans muttered and he crawled out from under the table, she'd seen him now so there was no point in running away. He stood up and brushed off his pants.

Alphys looked him up and down, "wh-who are you? What a-are you doing h-here?"

Sans shrugged, he wasn't going to tell her anything until he knew what she was doing. "i could ask you the same thing."

"I-I just wanted to... to... I'm here because I th-think my Father used to w-work here."

Sans frowned, "ok...? so?"

"H-he lost all his m-memories, c-complete amnesia, he d-doesn't even re-remember me or Mother. I think the was an a-accident. I j-just w-wanted to find o-out what h-happened... What a-about y-you? I-isn't it dangerous f-for a little k-kid to be here?"

"little kid? i'm thirteen!"

"O-oh..."

"yeah, i know i'm short but come on!"

"B-but why a-are you h-here?"

Sans shrugged again, he figured that out of everyone Alphys would be the most helpful. He decided to tell her maybe they could work together again, he just hoped it wouldn't make the paradox worse. "not that much of a different reason from yours."

"Y-your investigating t-the a-accident? D-did someone you k-know w-work here?"

"my dad used to work here to. he... well... i'd say he died in the accident but that wouldn't really be right..."

Alphys frowned and looked around again seemly trying to avoid eye contact, "wh-what do you mean?"

"it's a long story and you might not believe me but i'll try. we used to know each other, you don't remember me, no one does... but alphys, i think i'll need your help."

Sans knowing her name got her attention. They sat down and Sans told Alphys everything, it all seemed so surreal and oddly familiar to Alphys. His story was so bizarre and unbelievable and felt so real it just had to be true.

Wanting her own father to be normal again she agreed to help Sans and the two of them searched the lab and looked at the blueprints Sans had found, they began to research timelines and AUs. It was weird to Alphys to be working with Sans, it all felt so familiar yet she didn't know him but she did... It was a very weird feeling.

They were forced to start from scratch and they had much less resources so it was hard but they managed to rebuild most of the machine, there were parts missing and some things they simply couldn't work out but progress was made however slowly it was. They couldn't work on it all the time, Sans had multiple jobs and Alphys was in university but they slowly made progress over the years...

Alphys soon build Mettaton and became Royal Scientist, now with better access to funds and materials Sans and Alphys began to make more progress. They were still far off off it; there was too much missing information. Sans was slowly beginning to feel like it was pointless, he gave up and began to accept his father was gone for good...

* * *

Sans woke up and shot out of bed, panting, he had a blaster summoned next to him. He looked around the room, his room, with all of his trash, he was safe but why did he feel like he wasn't...

He'd had a nightmare, it was horrible, that laugh... Vines wrapping themselves around Papyrus's neck... A loud crack... Pain...

Sans sat back down and rubbed his eyes, that nightmare was the worst, it felt so real. Sans shook his head and with a sigh he got up and began to get dressed, Papyrus would be mad if he was late for sentry duty again after all Papyrus desperately wanted to join the Royal Guard once he was eighteen and was thrilled that his brother worked with them.

Sans didn't like the idea of Papyrus joining the Guard, it was too dangerous but he could hardly stop him, if that was what his cool brother wanted. Besides Sans was a sentry and was researching time travel, not really the safest things to do. He knew his father wouldn't approve of what the brothers were doing, he was so overprotective...

Sans pushed the thought from his mind and looked at his phone for the date and frowned... It was Papyrus's birthday, he was eighteen now. Something about that seemed wrong to Sans, didn't Papyrus turn eighteen ages ago?

No, because if he did then he'd already be part of the Royal Guard or at least in training. Something was wrong... What was his nightmare about again? He couldn't remember. Something was definitely wrong.

He took a shortcut to the lab behind the house with the time machine in it. He went into the furthest drawer and pulled out his notebook, something wasn't right.

His notebook was filled with his own writing but he didn't write any of it... Resets. Someone or something was messing with timelines, there was an anomaly, timelines stopping and starting and restarting. The notebook was filled with details of the resets and warnings of the creature doing them, a golden flower, he had no soul...

Sometimes he was a friend...

Most of the time he killed everyone.

Sans had to stop him. He didn't want Papyrus to die again and he didn't want the same accident that caused his father to shatter to happen again.

He had to find Papyrus, he took a shortcut back inside and into Papyrus's room, he wasn't there. Sans panicked, scared Flowey had already gotten to his brother and killed him but Sans saw no dust. He looked at his notebook that was still in his hands and flipped through it looking for any clues.

"time resets to paps's eighteenth birthday and can last anywhere from a day to around a year depending on the weed's goals. you'll find papyrus waiting outside undyne's house, flowey has never attacked him that early so he should be safe but hey, this is myself i'm talking to so you're probably going to check on him away. good luck future/past me, you'll need it."

Sans put the notebook back before going to Undyne's.

* * *

Sans appeared outside of Undyne's and saw his not so little anymore brother standing outside the door, staring at it, waiting.

"hey, bro," Sans said, trying to act natural and not panic.

Papyrus turned and smiled at Sans "OH, HELLO, BROTHER, IT'S GOOD TO SEE YOU UP EARLY! FOR ONCE!"

"heh, heh, yeah... what're you doing?"

"WAITING FOR UNDYNE TO COME BACK OUT!"

"right, you're going to join the royal guard now you're old enough, huh?"

"OF COURSE! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL BE THE BEST ROYAL GUARD THERE EVER WAS, YOU'LL SEE, BROTHER!"

"course, you're the coolest! how long have you been waiting here? have you knocked?"

Papyrus checked his phone of the time, "I HAVE BEEN HERE FOR SIX HOURS AND THIRTY SEVEN MINUTES! AND OF COURSE I KNOCKED BROTHER, WHY WOULDN'T I?"

Sans blinked up at his little brother, "you've been here since midnight?"

"OF COURSE! I WANTED TO JOIN AS SOON AS I TURNED EIGHTEEN! BUT UNDYNE SLAMMED THE DOOR IN MY FACE SO I'M JUST GOING TO WAIT UNTIL SHE COMES BACK OUT!"

"of course she slammed the door in your face, paps, it was midnight. why not just wait at home and go at a more reasonable time?"

"BECAUSE, DEAR BROTHER, I AM NOT NEARLY AS LAZY AS YOU ARE! IF I WANT INTO THE GUARD I MUST SHOW HOW DEDICATED I AM!"

Sans shrugged, "whatever you say bro. as long as you're alright. you are alright, right?"

"OF COURSE I'M ALRIGHT, WHY? IS SOMETHING WRONG?"

"i dunno. you haven't noticed anything weird have you? nothing out of place or wrong or anything?"

Papyrus frowned, "NO... SANS, IF THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG YOU CAN TALK TO ME, YOU KNOW?"

Sans sighed, he didn't know how many people were aware of the resets, it was probably just him, maybe Alphys if she was still researching timelines but he felt like it was best to keep this to himself. He didn't mind Papyrus helping him with saving their father if it was just looking through files but he didn't want his brother anywhere near anything dangerous, but he wasn't a kid and he wasn't stupid...

"i'm fine bro," Sans lied, he wasn't fine. What was the point in trying to do anything? It was all going to reset again. What was the point in continuing his research? His dad was gone for good.

"ARE YOU? BROTHER, I'M WORRIED ABOUT YOU! I DON'T WANT THE SAME THING THAT HAPPENED TO DAD HAPPEN TO YOU!"

"oh come on, that's not going to happen. i know how dangerous it is, i mean we _marrowly_ escaped."

Papyrus didn't look convinced, "SANS, THIS IS SERIOUS!"

"i'm being serious."

Papyrus shook his head, "SANS, I KNOW YOU ARE STILL RESEARCHING IT AND I KNOW ABOUT THE MACHINE AND WELL... SOMETIMES YOU REALLY REMIND ME OF HIM, ESPECIALLY ONCE YOU GET REALLY INTO IT. WHEN YOU THINK YOU'RE CLOSE TO A BREAKTHROUGH AND YOU DON'T EAT OR SLEEP FOR A WHILE... PLEASE DON'T DO ANYTHING DANGEROUS, I _CANNOT_ GO THOUGH THAT AGAIN."

Sans stepped forward and hugged his brother, "i know, i'm sorry i make you worry. i don't want you to. happy birthday by the way, your gift's at home."

Papyrus returned the hug, "THANK YOU! I LOVE YOU, SANS. PLEASE BE SAFE TODAY."

"i will," Sans let go, he hesitated, he didn't want to leave he was still worried about the weed but he didn't want to make Papyrus worry more than he already did.

Sans was about to shortcut to his Waterfall station but Papyrus grabbed onto him. "BROTHER, WAIT!"

"what's wrong?"

Papyrus wasn't looking at him but at the ground, he looked guilty for some reason, "I... I'M SORRY, I LIED. SOMETHING IS WEIRD TODAY."

"what is it?"

"I DON'T KNOW... I JUST FEEL LIKE... THIS HAPPENED BEFORE? MANY TIMES. AND JUST AN HOUR AGO THERE WAS THIS TALKING FLOWER, NOT AN ECHO FLOWER, A GOLDEN ONE. HE SAID... HE ASKED... HE WANTED TO KNOW IF I KNEW A 'DOCTOR GASTER.' I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO..."

Sans frowned, how did Papyrus say his name? He was never able to, was it because he was repeating what Flowey had said? How could the weed even say that name? What was Flowey doing... How did he even know that name? Did he know him or had he just heard of him somewhere? Sans didn't like this, whatever Flowey wanted with this information couldn't be good, it was never good according to his notebook.

Sans's eye lights went out. "what did you tell him?"

"I TOLD HIM I'D NEVER HEARD OF HIM IN MY LIFE. THAT WAS GOOD, RIGHT? WE SHOULDN'T TALK ABOUT DAD IN CASE WE CAUSE A PARADOX, RIGHT?"

Sans nodded, he doubted just talking about him would cause a paradox like he had thought when he was a kid, he spoke about his father all the time with Alphys and nothing bad became of that but he knew for certain that Flowey should never find out anything about him even if he could be a key to freeing him.

"don't tell him anything if he comes back. keep away from him."

"... ALRIGHT. I... HMM..."

"what is it?"

"WHILE WE'RE ON THE TOPIC ON THE WAY HERE I TOOK THE RIVER PERSON'S BOAT. I THINK... I THINK THEY ALSO SPOKE OF OUR DAD."

"how so?"

"'BEWARE THE MAN WHO SPEAKS IN HANDS.' THAT'S DAD RIGHT? I'VE HEARD PEOPLE REFER TO HIM LIKE THAT BEFORE; THE MAN WHO SPEAKS IN HANDS. HE'S NOT A THREAT THOUGH. RIGHT?"

Sans had heard that before, that exact wording... The human, the justice soul, the one that tried to kill them... But what did that even mean? His father was not a threat. Sans stared into nothing for a moment.

"multiverse, perhaps?" Sans muttered.

Papyrus frowned, he felt uneasy and lost. Sans was going to shut him out again, he knew it and he knew something was happening. "SANS, WHAT'S GOING ON?"

"_tibia _completely honest with you bro, i have no idea. but i'm going to find out."

Papyrus nodded, he'd just have to be patient, if he pushed Sans would just flee and avoid him and they were stronger together. They needed to be together right now, when things were really not right. "JUST BE CAREFUL. IF THIS GUYS DANGEROUS JUST DON'T GO NEAR HIM!"

"don't worry, i'll be fine."

Before Papyrus could argue back and tell his brother to keep away more firmly the door of Undyne's house flew open, "Oh my god! I cannot believe you are still out here! You punk! You're real serious, huh?"

"OH, UNDYNE! YES, I AM VERY SERIOUS!"

Sans took the distraction and left. He had work to do.


	20. A Big Lead

Time went on, Flowey didn't kill anyone. Sans knew he was looking for Gaster and he was afraid of what he might do. Sans once again started looking but he couldn't even open his father's journals, it was feeling rather hopeless. Papyrus began to help as well when he wasn't training and trying to capture a human. The brothers both began to feel depressed, everything seemed hopeless, there was no way to save their father, a human hadn't fallen in years and a flower was tormenting them.

Flowey had befriended Papyrus, he'd praise him and tell him predictions. Sans didn't trust the weed at all, he was afraid he was trying to manipulate his brother into telling him about their father. Flowey wasn't trying to help them, if anything he was trying to help himself, there was a lot of power to be had in the Void. He could already travel through time to a certain extent and Sans dreaded to think of what would happen if he got to his father and got even more power from him or the Void. He also feared what the weed already knew, for him to be going after the skelebros, he must know there was a connection. Then there was the fact he knew about him in the first place.

Sans didn't know that he was Prince Asriel. That he had all his memories from before his death, unaltered. He didn't know about Flowey's time in the lab, that he knew what Gaster had done. Sans didn't know that the constant resets were weakening the Void.

A year passed. This reset lasting much longer than ever before. Sans woke up every day, half expecting it to be Papyrus's eighteenth birthday again but he woke with all his memories from the past year so he knew it was a new day. Part of him hoped that the resets were finally over and he could move on with life, get even further past his twenty sixth birthday for once.

And he did. He got past it, he got past Papyrus's nineteenth. Two weeks after Papyrus's birthday, a human fell.

* * *

"NO!" Sans yelled as soon as he saw Papyrus's dust on the ground, he feel to his knees, he didn't even feel sad or angry anymore, he just felt empty. It was all so pointless. There had been so many genocides, according to the notebook. The kid just kept on coming back. He just wanted it to end...

* * *

"... ... ... so... guess that's it, huh? ... just... don't say i didn't warn you. welp. i'm going to grillby's. papyrus, do you want anything?"

Sans felt his body crumbling away, he wondered if this was going to be it, if he'd die for good this time. He hoped so, he just wanted it to be over, even if it meant death...

"NO! PLEASE! NOT AGAIN! DON'T MAKE ME WATCH THIS AGAIN!"

Sans flinched, that was his father's voice. How was that even possible? Sans looked in the direction it came from; he saw a shadowy figure, hunched and goopy. Sans's vision was blurring but he could clearly see his father's scarred face.

"dad...?" Sans's voice was weak, he didn't have a lot of time but he still stumbled forward.

Gaster seemed shocked that his son could see him. He knew the void he was trapped in had weakened slightly from the constant resets, allowing him to pull himself back together for a brief moment but he'd only been able to do that in the hidden room in Waterfall. He didn't have time to question it, he was too late to save Sans but he was at least going to try to comfort his son as he turned to dust.

Gaster reached forward as Sans stumbled towards him and fell into his arms.

"you're... here..." Sans breathed out, he briefly wondered were the human was and why he wasn't dead yet. It was as if time had slowed or even stopped completely.

"OH, SANS, MY PRECIOUS LITTLE BABYBONES... I'M SO SORRY."

"it's ok..."

"IT'S NOT, I SHOULD'VE PROTECTED YOU. I'M SORRY, I'M A TERRIBLE FATHER..."

Sans shook his head, "you're not... you're the best... you and papyrus are the best... i'm the terrible one, i wish i could save you."

"SANS... I MAY NOT APPROVE OF YOUR CHOICE IN CAREER BUT I AM VERY PROUD OF YOU. YOU DID YOUR BEST."

"i could'a tried harder..."

Gaster hugged his son close to him, he didn't want to leave, he didn't want Sans to die but he could feel himself begin to shatter again and he knew Sans was dying. He felt happy that he at least got this moment with at least one of his children... No, he'd just done something similar with Papyrus... Was that in this timeline? How long ago did he do that? He couldn't remember, he didn't even know if this was real.

"SANS, MY BOY, YOU CAN SAVE ME. PLEASE DON'T FORGET... I'M ALWAYS WITH YOU." Gaster placed his hand over Sans's breaking soul and turned it blue, he began to give Sans some of his magic, like he did when he first made the little soul. It wouldn't save him but giving him magic from the Void would cause him to remember everything when the human reset. It would be painful to remember but maybe his boys could do something with the knowledge and the extra power.

"SANS, LISTEN TO ME, IN MY OLD OFFICE THERE IS A SAFE. IT'S HIDDEN IN THE WALL, BEHIND THE BOOKCASE. I HAD IT INSTALLED AFTER THE HUMAN ATTACK. WHAT YOU NEED TO FINISH THE MACHINE IS IN THERE..." Gaster couldn't finish what he was going to say, Sans was too far gone.

Tears fell as his son turned to dust in his arms.

* * *

Sans woke up. He didn't have time to think, he didn't need to, he remembered everything. He remembered every reset, he remembered his father holding him as he died.

Sans had to do something, he wasn't going to let the human do another genocide. He'd make sure they did a pacifist or he'd kill them, right there at the door, promise be damned, he wouldn't let them hurt his brother or friends again.

He pulled on his clothes, inside out and back to front but he didn't really care. He had to go before they came out, before they hurt anyone.

But just as he was about to leave his door flew open and Papyrus came running inside and threw himself at Sans causing both brothers to fall with a clatter.

"hey, bro, what the fu-"

"SANS! YOU'RE ALIVE!" Papyrus was crying and he held onto Sans as tightly as he could.

"of course i'm alive, why wouldn't i be? did you have some kind of nightmare?" Sans didn't know if Papyrus had also remembered the resets but even if he did, he died before Sans so he shouldn't know he had also died but then again the human was killing everyone, maybe he just assumed...

The younger skeleton sobbed loudly and held on tighter. "SANS!"

As much as Sans wanted to return the hug and comfort his brother, he was being squeezed so tightly he was worried a rib might crack. "bro, you're crushing me..."

At that Papyrus let go and backed up, "OH, SORRY!" Papyrus tried to wipe away his tears only for more to fall.

"hey, hey, it's ok, paps. i'm here, we're both ok." Sans tried to comfort his brother and hugged him.

"ARE WE?" Papyrus asked. "DON'T YOU REMEMBER THE RESETS TO?"

Sans pulled away, the two brothers sat on the floor of Sans's room in silence before Sans decided there was no point in lying since Papyrus already knew. "i remember. knew about 'em before, i had a notebook full of details about 'em, but i never remembered, only a bit of deja vu..."

Papyrus nodded, "I KNEW SOMETHING WAS WRONG BUT... SANS... WHAT IF THEY KILL US ALL AGAIN? I KNOW THEY CAN BE GOOD, THEY HAVE BEEN MANY TIMES BEFORE BUT..."

"yeah... the last what? ten, twenty times? have all been genocide..."

"I CAN'T. NOT AGAIN! I CAN'T WATCH YOU DIE AGAIN!"

Sans frowned, how was that even possible? "what do you mean? you died before me, every time."

"I KNOW BUT... I DON'T KNOW HOW BUT I REMEMBER EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED AFTER I DIED TOO!"

"... you think dad did that?"

"HUH?"

"made us remember? 'cause now that you mention it i remember the kid killing asgore and flowey but that happened after i died and we really shouldn't remember the resets at all... you think dad did it?"

Papyrus thought for a moment before he nodded. "HE WAS THERE. HE HELD ME WHEN I DIED AND GAVE ME SOME OF HIS MAGIC... I THOUGHT I DREAMT IT BUT THAT HAPPENED, DIDN'T IT...?"

"yeah..." Sans sighed and stood up... "i think i might be able to free him... but first we need to end the resets."

Papyrus shot up as well, "WAIT, SANS DON'T KILL THEM! I KNOW THEY CAN BE GOOD! THEY JUST NEED TO TRY HARDER."

"relax, i'm not going to kill them, that doesn't work anyway, they'll keep coming back. i'll try talking first, keep 'em busy. you get the DT extractor prototype from the labs, it's smaller than the current one."

"SANS..."

"they can do this because they are determined, we might as well try getting rid of their determination. they'll survive as long as we don't take too much. then we find the weed and do the same so he doesn't get the powers back."

Papyrus didn't seem to like that idea, the plan make sense, sure, and it definitely had them meet in the middle, but... "BUT SANS WHAT IF THEY ARE GENOCIDAL? THEY'LL KILL YOU! BESIDES YOU KNOW YOUR WAY AROUND THE LABS BETTER THAN I DO! I'LL DISTRACT THEM, YOU GET THE EXTRACTOR!"

Sans shook his head, "doesn't matter that you're stronger, they still kill you in one hit and i know you won't be trying. i'm at least fast enough to dodge for a while."

Papyrus was going to argue but he knew Sans was right, despite the younger being stronger, Sans was more likely to survive long enough... "ALRIGHT THEN, BROTHER. JUST BE CAREFUL, IF YOU GET TIRED JUST RUN AWAY, OR SHORTCUT AWAY. DON'T DIE AGAIN!"

Sans smiled and winked, "don't worry, there's no way i'm dying now."

Sans was filled with hope. His father had given him hope, he'd given up long ago but now he couldn't lose. He wanted a happy life, he wanted time to flow normally, he wanted his father back and he was going to get it.

"...FINE," Papyrus left it at that and changed the subject. "NOW THAT'S AGREED UPON, YOU ARE NOT GOING OUT LIKE THAT!" Papyrus gestured to Sans's clothes.

Sans looked down at himself and back at Papyrus. "why?"

"WHY? WHY!? BROTHER, YOUR SHIRT IS ON BACKWARDS AND YOUR HOODIE'S INSIDE OUT! I THINK YOUR PANTS ARE BOTH INSIDE OUT _AND_ BACK TO FRONT!"

Sans shrugged, "seems fine to me. too much effort to change."

"OH MY GOD! YOU ARE SO LAZY! CHANGE! NOW!"

* * *

Sans stood outside the door to the ruins, waiting and nervous, he hoped Papyrus would be back quickly. Maybe he should've gone, he could teleport after all... but the extractor would still take time to find, the human might kill Papyrus in the time it took to get it and Sans wasn't sure if he'd still remember if there was another reset. He had to end this now.

The door opened, Sans stayed hidden, watching to see if the human was covered in dust or not. They weren't.

This wasn't a genocide, it was either a neutral run and only some would die or it was finally a true pacifist again. Sans wasn't going to wait around, he stepped in their path, blocking the way.

Frisk jumped and looked up at Sans in surprise. They didn't know why he was in front of them, he always came up behind them and asked them to turn around and to shake his hand and then there'd be a loud fart sound, something was different this run and Frisk didn't like it.

"human," Sans was looking at them without his eye lights. Frisk was scared, had they gone too far? Were they going to have a bad time before they even killed anyone?

"Sans, I-"

"don't. you don't get to say anything," Sans stepped forward, "this ends now. one way or another. i'm done with the resets, i won't let you hurt my brother anymore."

Sans's left eye began to glow, flashing blue and yellow. Frisk didn't want this but it was what they deserved, they'd done so many horrible things but they didn't want to anymore, whatever force that was making them reset was gone. Something or someone had messed with the code, they got rid of the player, they got rid of Chara. Frisk didn't know how or why but they were finally free to have their own life. They wanted a true pacifist, they wanted to live on the surface with their friends. If that wasn't possible then so be it. They'd show Sans mercy and he'd kill them and they wouldn't come back.

Frisk ran forwards with open arms. Sans froze, they weren't carrying a weapon, they weren't attacking him, he didn't try to dodge...

Frisk hugged him and cried and held on as tight as they could, "I'm sorry, Sans, I'm so sorry!"

Sans was left stunned, he was so sure it would be another genocide but... "kid..."

"I'm sorry! Give me a bad time if you want, I deserve it! I want to make things right, I'm so, so sorry!"

Sans hesitantly returned the hug, "you haven't gained any LOVE, this time, huh?"

"I want this to be the last! I want to live on the surface with all of you! I want to be friends again! I didn't think you'd remember..."

"yeah, i didn't think i'd remember either... kid, i want to believe you, that this'll be the last but..."

"I know you can't trust me but I swear it will be! I know this is no excuse but there was some... force... controlling me, but it's gone now... _Someone _got rid of it, _someone_ dark, and goopy, I think. I promise, no more resets."

Sans sighed, he didn't know if he could really trust them or not, he backed away slightly. He wanted to. He liked the kid, they'd been good friends in the past resets, he didn't want to hurt them. "you know i hate promises kid but i want to believe you. papyrus will, he remembers to, you know. for him i'll trust you but if you harm anyone or if you reset again, well, you know the drill by now."

"Thank you, Sans!"

"BROTHER, I HAVE THE THING! ...EXTRACTOR!" Papyrus came running up to them, Frisk looked confused but could only assume the skelebros had a plan to stop them should they still be dangerous.

Sans looked at the huge bag Papyrus was dragging and called out to him, "actually bro, i don't think we need it."

Papyrus wasn't pleased by that, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T NEED IT!? DO YOU KNOW HOW HEAVY IT WAS!? AND HOW HARD IT WAS TO EXPLAIN TO ALPHYS!?"

"heh heh, sorry bro but the kid's decided to be good and i've decided to give them _one_ more chance, less work that way!"

"OH MY GOD, SANS WILL THERE EVER BE A DAY WHERE YOU ARE NOT LAZY? ...WAIT, DID YOU JUST SAY FRISK IS GOING TO BE GOOD THIS TIME?"

"I want this to be the last," Frisk said again, "I'm really sorry for everything, Papyrus." Frisk was still confused about how the skelebros remembered it all but they figured with so many resets things were bound to slip through and glitch. They payed it no mind, they were just happy to have their friends back.

Papyrus ran forward and picked up the human, pulling them in for a hug and spinning them around, "OH I KNEW YOU COULD BE GOOD! I JUST KNEW IT!"

Frisk giggled and hugged Papyrus as well, "I'm sorry. I'll free you all and we can live in peace on the surface."

"i still don't trust you fully, you'll have to earn that," Sans added, "but for now maybe we should get on with things, you still need to do the true pacifist route. i'll see you guys up ahead." Sans walked off going the wrong way...

"OH YES!" Papyrus called happily, "NOW THAT YOU'RE GOOD AGAIN, PUZZLES AWAIT! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, SHALL HELP YOU WITH THEM!"

Frisk giggled again as Papyrus put them onto his shoulders and ran off towards the first puzzle. Leaving the extractor behind.

* * *

They got to the surface. Humans accepted monsters and they lived happily and in peace. Everything was going so well and Frisk had kept their promise, there were no more resets. Life went on, time flowing the way it should and after a few months of living on the surface things settled. Sans got a job at a hot-dog stand and worked some nights as a security guard, where he just slept through his shifts. Papyrus helped Frisk with their job as a monster-human ambassador but once everything settled he decided to go to college to learn to cook.

Sans was still lost on how to save his father. He had no clues and he felt like his father had tried to tell him something important before Sans had died but he couldn't remember what it was, he'd been too far gone. Sans was getting rather frustrated with himself for not remembering but he kept it all hidden, he could deal with it himself, there was no point in dragging Papyrus into it when he was so happy.

Frisk, to, was happy, they wished they could've saved Asriel as well but it seemed impossible, he was stuck as a flower and there was nothing Frisk could do but bring him to the surface in a pot but he didn't seem very happy about that so Frisk eventually let him go. He did show up from time to time but didn't stick around for long.

There was something bothering Frisk, however. They had the feeling there was someone else that needed saving, other than Asriel and Frisk had a good idea of who that was; the man who had messed with the code, the man who saved them from the control of others... Gaster.

They didn't know a lot about him, only that he was the Royal Scientist before Alphys, he'd built The Core and that he was shattered across time and space. They also knew there was some connection to Sans since his weapons were called "Gaster Blasters" and he had that strange machine and blueprints in the room behind his house in Snowdin. They wanted to know more about him but they couldn't find any information in any books and they were too scared to ask anyone. It was weird to them that there was no information anywhere, only what they got from the Followers. If he was such a great man surely he'd be written about somewhere. Frisk began to think they'd hit a dead end, they couldn't find out anything about him, that was until they saw Papyrus's drivers licence.

They didn't mean to snoop around, they had been at the skelebros house for a sleepover since Toriel had some meetings at the school and Papyrus had come up with the idea of a sleepover. Frisk and the skelebros had been playing hid and seek at Frisk's request and they had been searching for Sans, the little cheater kept teleporting away as soon as Frisk got close. They had gone to look in Papyrus's room and just happened to see his licence on his desk, Papyrus had been very proud when he got it but Frisk hadn't seen it yet and got curious. Papyrus looked very happy in the picture but that wasn't what caught their eye, what did was the name on it; Papyrus Gaster.

Frisk knew that there was some connection between Gaster and the skelebros but for them to be related... Frisk wanted to know more, Papyrus must know something about the missing Royal Scientist if he shared a name with him. They wondered how they were related, was W.D. Gaster another brother? Their father? Grandfather? Uncle? Cousin?Frisk was determined to find out. They knew asking Sans wouldn't get them anywhere, he was too secretive, besides they couldn't even find him. They'd ask Papyrus.

Frisk returned to the living room, Papyrus had decided to help Frisk look for Sans but wasn't having much luck either and was ranting about how much of a cheater his brother was.

"Hey, Papyrus," Frisk called to him as they entered the room.

"AH, FRISK! NO LUCK IN FINDING MY CHEATING BROTHER?"

Frisk shook their head.

"WE SHOULD THINK OF A WAY TO TRAP HIM!" Papyrus sat down on the sofa, "I'M SURE WITH SOMEONE AS GREAT AS ME HELPING YOU, WE'LL MAKE THE BEST SANS TRAP!"

"That sounds like a great idea Papyrus, but I wanted to ask you something?" Frisk sat next to the tall skeleton and looked up at him.

"SURE! WHAT IS IT?"

Frisk was a little nervous asking about it, after all there must be a reason why Gaster was never mentioned anywhere but Papyrus was nice, he wouldn't blow up at them for asking a question. "Do you know someone called W.D. Gaster?"

Papyrus flinched at the name, he knew something. "NO, SORRY, NEVER HEARD OF THEM."

Frisk was surprised, they never thought Papyrus would lie but the fact he did just made Frisk all the more curious. "Really? I thought you might know, I just happened to see your drivers license and saw your full name."

"SO?" Papyrus was nervous.

"Your last name's Gaster."

"THAT DOESN'T MEAN MUCH, HUMAN. LOTS OF PEOPLE HAVE THE SAME LAST NAME BUT AREN'T RELATED. IT'S JUST A COMMON LAST NAME FOR SKELETONS LIKE HOW SMITH IS FOR HUMANS."

Frisk wasn't buying it for a moment. "What about Sans's lab? And the blasters? Papyrus, I can tell you're lying."

Papyrus sighed, he looked sad. That made Frisk feel a little bad, they didn't want to upset their friend but before they could apologise Papyrus spoke again. "YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW? I TRUST YOU HUMAN, AND I WANT TO TELL YOU... IT'S JUST THAT SANS GETS KIND OF SECRETIVE ESPECIALLY ABOUT _THAT._"

"Sorry, Papyrus. I was just curious. There were some weird monsters that I saw some resets and they told me about the old Royal Scientist and that he made The Core and he 'fell into his creation' and was shattered across time and space. It always seemed like there should be more but I could never find anything."

Papyrus seemed to think for a while, "YOU SAW HIS FOLLOWERS... BUT THEY FELL TO... WHAT'S GOING ON?"

Frisk decided to ask again, "who is W.D. Gaster?"

With a sigh Papyrus answered, "HIS NAME'S WINGDINGS GASTER, HE'S... OUR FATHER."

Frisk gasped, they were happy now that Papyrus was telling them and they were excited to know more. "Your father?"

Papyrus nodded, "HE WAS REALLY GREAT! OF COURSE THE FATHER OF THE GREAT PAPYRUS MUST BE EQUALLY AS GREAT! HE WAS THE BEST FATHER, HE REALLY SPOILT US BUT... WELL, HE WAS TROUBLED, HE FOUGHT IN THE WAR. HE WANTED TO FREE MONSTERS, FREE SANS AND I. HE WENT A LITTLE MAD. I WISH I COULD REMEMBER MORE ABOUT HIM, I WAS ONLY FIVE WHEN IT HAPPENED. SANS COULD PROBABLY TELL YOU MORE."

"What happened?"

Papyrus told them everything, he trusted the young human even if his brother did not. There was something that told him he would need them to free his father so he told them everything from the events leading up to the accident to the accident itself. He even told them about how it was impossible for them to speak his name or introduce themselves as Gasters until recently. He told them about how he'd seen his father as he died and how after that he could somehow use his full name again.

Frisk listened carefully to his story, they wanted to help the brothers and their father and they had an idea of how to do that. Papyrus's description of his father matched the appearance of the mystery man they had once seen in a hidden room in Waterfall. If they could somehow get back there...

"heya guys, give up? does that mean i win?" Sans appeared in the room and lazily wandered to the sofa and sat between the two, forcing them to move out of his way as they where seated in the centre and rather close together.

"YOU DO NOT WIN BECAUSE YOU CHEATED!" Papyrus lightly slapped Sans on the back of his skull.

"aww come on, bro. you never said no powers~"

"IT'S OBVIOUS THAT YOU DON'T USE POWERS OTHERS DON'T HAVE! ANYWAY THAT'S NOT IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW! FRISK ASKED ME ABOUT DAD!"

Sans expression changed quickly from happy and carefree to serious, "what? papyrus, i thought we agreed not to talk about that."

"NO IT'S OKAY! FRISK CAN HELP US! THEY SAW HIM IN WATERFALL, SANS! I THINK WE'LL NEED THEM!"

Sans eyed Frisk suspiciously, before sighing. "you better not betray us, kiddo. if i wasn't so desperate for a lead i wouldn't involve you. what happened? what do you know?"


	21. Home

They finally had a lead, the brothers were so happy and they wasted no time in going back to the Underground. They needed to get into that room in Waterfall but first they needed the time machine and the DT Extractor. They went to the lab in Hotland first to get them, since Sans had moved his machine there for safe keeping after Frisk freed them. Both of the skelebros were feeling more hopeful than ever before.

Sans knew there was something he was missing but he tried not to worry about it. There was no one left in the Underground so they were free to just walk into the lab and take what they needed. As Frisk and Papyrus began gathering equipment and tools that had been left behind, Sans found himself wandering and thinking back to what his father had said to him when he was dying last reset.

He stood outside his father's old office, only Sans had a key to it so no one else had entered since Gaster disappeared. Sans knew there was nothing there, he'd searched the office so many times but he still found himself unlocking the door and going in. He had so many memories in the office, he and Papyrus used to play there all the time while their father worked, Sans used to help him with his work as much as he could. Now the office was dusty and unused. Sans sighed and turned on the light before going over to the desk and sitting in his father's chair. He proceeded to spin on it. Once he got dizzy he stopped and rested his elbows on the desk, head in his hands.

"what am i even doing?" Sans muttered to himself, "it's just going to end up as another dead end..."

Sans found himself looking around the room, eyes finally settling on the old bookcase in the corner. He got up and walked towards it, there was something about it that made him think there was an answer somewhere in there but he'd been through every book, he knew there was nothing. Behind the bookcase... Sans frowned, his father had said something about there being something behind the bookcase...

"HEY SANS! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? WE HAVE THE STUFF, NOW WE NEED TO TELEPORT TO WATERFALL," Papyrus said as he ran into the room, he was clearly excited, he really belived that this would be it. Frisk was following closely behind him.

"hey, help me move this bookcase." Sans didn't take his eyes off of it.

"WHY?"

"just do it."

Papyrus and Frisk looked at each other and shrugged. They didn't know why he wanted to move it but there was no harm in doing so. The three of the took hold of the bookcase, Papyrus pulled while Sans and Frisk pushed. With the three of them working together it moved rather easily.

"OH WOWIE! THERE'S A SAFE THERE!" Papyrus said. The safe was flush against the fall, it looked brand-new and shiny, it really stood out in the old fashioned, dirty office.

Sans nodded, "i think there might be something to help us in there."

"Okay, so lets open it," Frisk said as they stepped forward, "what's the combination?"

They both looked at Sans expectantly but Sans only shrugged. "no idea, let's just guess."

"YOU DON'T KNOW?! WHAT WOULD WE EVEN GUESS?" Papyrus huffed.

Sans shrugged again and looked at the safe a little closer, "it's four digits, lets try dates? ...lets see... dad's birthday... nope... asgore's maybe... nope... grillby's... nope."

Papyrus pushed Sans out of the way, "IF IT'S DAD'S SAFE LET'S TRY OURS! MINE FIRST," Papyrus typed in his own birthday, it didn't work, "YOURS THEN." That didn't work either.

Sans pushed his brother back out of the way. "maybe it's not a birthday. lets try dad's bankcard's pin number!" Sans typed that in, it didn't work.

"HOW DO YOU KNOW DAD'S PIN NUMBER?" Papyrus asked.

"oh, i just watched as he typed it in when we went shopping and then when i learned to shortcut, i stole it and went to grillby's. the old man spend so much money on us i don't think he never noticed when he got the bank statement and grillby never thought it was weird since dad spoilt us so much, he just thought i had permission."

Papyrus didn't look angry at his brother's thieving and addiction to greasy food, just disappointed. "SANS, YOU ARE TERRIBLE!"

"heh, i know."

Frisk, curious about what was in the safe and desperate to get to work, pushed past the brothers and typed in '0000' that, to, did not work, they went on and typed in '0001.' "Let's just type in everything in order. We'll get there eventually."

"that'll take too long," Sans said, "i'm sure we can figure it out."

"You two can figure it out, after all I never knew him. While you guys talk it over I'll keep doing this. It might just be random."

"THAT SOUNDS LIKE A PLAN! IS THERE ANY OTHER DATES YOU WANT TO TRY, SANS?"

Sans shook his head, "i can't think of any, i don't think it's a birthday..."

Papyrus put his hand to his chin in thought. "MAYBE IT IS. WE WERE BORN IN THE SAME MONTH, ALTHOUGH SEVEN YEARS APART, SO WHY DON'T WE TRY THE DAYS OF BOTH OF OURS."

Sans shrugged, "might as well."

Frisk got out of the way and let Sans type in the numbers, it opened, inside there were several files and some machine parts. Frisk curiously picked up a very thick file, they couldn't read the title as it was in wingdings so they just opened it to a random page.

"Aww, Sans you were so cute as a baby!" They cooed and held the file open and showed the brothers the photos of baby Sans that were glued in. He was dressed in a panda onesie and holding on tightly to a ketchup bottle, a few pictures had Gaster's hands in them, it looked like he was trying to take the bottle away but Sans seemed to be holding on too tightly.

"oh my god, give me that!" Sans said he as snatched the file from Frisk.

"AWW BROTHER, ARE YOU EMBARRASSED~?" Papyrus teased as he leaned over trying to see the file that Sans was holding to his chest to stop him from looking.

"shut up!"

Papyrus shrugged and went into the safe, "OH LOOK HERE'S MINE!" He said as he pulled out another file and handing it to Frisk, "UNLIKE MY BROTHER I DON'T MIND YOU LOOKING AT MY BABY PICTURES!"

Sans rolled his eyes as his brother and friend began to look through the pictures and journal entries. Frisk was asking questions about how Sans and Papyrus came into being when they saw the little soul in the tube. Sans just couldn't believe that out of all the research and important work his father had done in his life the things he kept hidden and safe where their records and baby pictures. There was another file inside the safe however, Gaster's DT and space/time travel research; that was what Sans needed. He finally read the other sixteen entries he never had and he had the complete blueprints for the machine as well as all the missing parts. He finally had all the things he needed to free him and it had been here all along. He wished he could've gotten to it sooner but he was happy he was finally going to do it, finally after fourteen years, he'd have his dad back.

* * *

It took them a long time and a lot of teleportation to find the room Frisk spoke of but they found it eventually.

Papyrus looked at the out of place grey door and took his brother's hand. "IS THIS REALLY IT?"

Sans nodded, "let's do this."

Frisk, happy to have finally found it, rushed over and opened the door. The three of them stepped inside...

The room was empty and cold but they didn't let that deter them as they began to set up the time machine and the smaller DT Extractor.

"SANS THIS WILL WORK RIGHT? WE WON'T BE TORN APART? WE'LL BRING HIM BACK?"

"don't worry, bro, i've modified the machine with alphys and with dad's notes and parts it can't fail."

"What will the machine do?" Frisk asked looking at it.

"it'll pull him back together, he was shattered into pieces and most of them seem to gather here. once we've done that paps and i will have to pull him out of the void with blue magic. then we'll get the DT out of him and hope he hasn't gotten madder. we will have to be careful to get the right gaster though."

Papyrus frowned, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'GET THE RIGHT GASTER?'"

"multiverse, bro. there are hundreds, no, thousands of alternate universes, we don't want to accidentally get the wrong one, one that might be evil or abusive or something. we have to get _our _dad. i think that's what river was warning us about."

Papyrus was nervous enough as it was but he nodded anyway. No matter how scared he was, he wanted his dad back more than anything. "SO WHAT'S THE PLAN? YOU FIRE UP THE MACHINE WE BOTH PULL HIM OUT AND PUSH HIM INTO THE EXTRACTOR AND FRISK TURNS IT ON AND WE GET THE DT OUT OF HIM?"

Sans nodded, "yeah sounds good to me. you alright with that plan kiddo?"

Frisk gave the skelebros a thumbs up and stood next to the Extractor, ready to turn it on the second Gaster was in place.

"right, no time to waste. ready, bro?"

Papyrus pushed his fears aside and forced himself to smile. "THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS ALWAYS READY!" He announced.

Sans gave his brother a reassuring smile and began to type in code. The screen lit up showing millions of little dots. "these dots represent all the peaces of all gasters." Sans explained as he kept typing, "we need to code it so it only pulls together our one."

Papyrus and Frisk watched closely as Sans typed quickly. Slowly all the little dots began to gather together into different clumps. Sans frowned and kept typing, one clump re-shattered.

Papyrus gasped at it. "WAS THAT-"

"don't worry, bro," Sans assured, "that code wasn't from our universe. 'm pretty sure that was the gaster from underfell; he's defiantly evil."

"UNDERFELL?"

"just one of the many universes. trust me bro, we don't wanna mess with that one."

Frisk couldn't help their curiosity. "You seem to know a lot about these universes... Have you been there?"

Sans shook his head, "no, but dad has. he's been to a lot of them. i found a lot of reports where he detailed lots about each one he visited. i didn't want to risk myself trying it, although it is much safer than travelling through time. i also can't really be arsed with it, too much effort."

"LAZY!" Papyrus called out. Frisk laughed and Sans shook his head.

Eventually there was only one clump left. "this's it!" Sans called and Papyrus grabbed Sans's hand again, squeezing tightly.

Everything that happened next happened so fast. Sans typed out a long sequence of code with one hand, the other holding tightly onto Papyrus's. The machine began to rumble and a dark portal opened, it threatened to expand but the machine seemed to keep it small. There was movement inside of it, blobs of something coming together into a goopy mess. The goopy mess soon began to form into a person, a person who was screaming. The second the soul came together the brothers turned it blue and pulled. There was a resistance, something was pulling back but the brothers were stronger than they had been as children. They were stronger and more determined, they were not going to let the Void have their father. Sans and Papyrus help on tightly to each other's hand and pulled harder, they could do it.

"DAD!"

"dad!"

With a final tug the brothers won and their father came stumbling out of the Void and back to reality. They had no time to waste and pushed him into the DT Extractor. Frisk turned it on and Gaster's soul was trapped inside of it. Gaster seemed too dazed to fight it or even realise what was happening, although he did scream out as the DT was removed. The machine did it's job, taking out all the DT and Gaster's body became less goopy and more solid as more was removed until he was normal again.

He was released from the machine and fell forward onto his face on the ground, his clothes were all torn but he was unhurt. Sans and Papyrus let out a sigh of relief and let go of each other, Sans sat on the floor and laughed. "heh heh we did it, we finally did it! it's over!"

"NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus laughed with his brother before he took a step forward to help his father up. Neither of them could believe it and they were so happy.

Gaster got up on his own though. The first thing he noticed was that he was limping again but he payed it no mind and he looked at the three people in front of him.

It was too much, he didn't know where he was. The last thing he knew he was falling and his children were calling for him. He was haunted by memories of other timelines and universes, he'd been trapped for so long and yet no time at all, an eternity but for only a second. He didn't know what was real and what was a hallucination and this looked like freedom, but he couldn't be free; the Void had him and would never let him leave. He decided this wasn't real, he decided this was a hallucination. He decided he had finally snapped and gone truly mad.

Gaster summoned a blaster and fired it at the hallucinations. They weren't real, they couldn't be, he didn't want to see this, he didn't want hope for something that wouldn't happen.

"dad!?" Sans shouted as he dodged.

Gaster sent a series of bone attacks forward.

"SANS? IS THIS ONE OF THE EVIL DADS YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT? LIKE 'UNDERFELL?' DID WE GET THE WRONG ONE?"

Sans shook his head, "this is our dad, i don't know what's going on."

Frisk wasn't going to stand by and watch, they chose ACT then TALK. "Dr Gaster! Stop! We don't want to fight you! Your sons don't want to fight you!"

"THEY'RE NOT MY SONS!" Gaster yelled, two magic hands sighing his words so quickly Frisk barely had time to see what he had said. "THIS IS ALL AN ILLUSION! IT'S NOT REAL! IT CAN'T BE..."

"DAD, PLEASE THIS IS REAL! WE'RE HERE, YOU'RE SAFE!" Papyrus called out.

"MY SONS ARE CHILDREN!" Gaster called as he sent out another bone attack, followed by a blaster.

"no we're not! dad we are here, we freed you. i'm so sorry it took so long!" Sans tried.

Gaster shook his head. Two blasters appeared and fired. "I'M TRAPPED FOREVER! ALONE FOREVER!"

They could only dodge as more attacks came at them, quickly. Frisk chose TALK again, "You aren't trapped. You're free. You don't have to fight anymore. Monster-kind is free!"

"JUST STOP! GO AWAY! WHY MUST YOU TORMENT ME?! I JUST WANT MY FAMILY!"

Despite his obvious limp, Gaster was so fast, his attacks so strong. Frisk was scared, scared that Gaster would kill them, that he'd kill his own children believing they weren't real. They didn't know what to do; talking didn't work and picking mercy wasn't doing anything, Gaster wouldn't accept it.

"JUST LEAVE ME ALONE! IT'S MY FATE TO BE ALONE, THE LAST OF MY KIND... EVERYONE I LOVE IS DEAD..."

Papyrus gasped and grabbed hold of Sans by his hood, dragging him forward, closer to their father. He couldn't take this, he didn't like what he was saying, he wanted it to end.

Papyrus reached out and took his father's right hand, looked him in the eye and said, "DAD, **YOU ARE NOT ALONE.** SANS AND I ARE HERE. PLEASE COME BACK TO US! WE MISS YOU!"

Gaster flinched and looked at the illusion of his youngest child... Was it not an illusion? He could touch him... You can't touch illusions... He told him he wasn't alone...

Sans took his father left hand and squeezed it, "dad, we're really here. you're free and definitely not alone. i'm so sorry i ever gave up hope."

Gaster looked at both of his sons, they were there, real and in front of him. He felt the tears fall and his legs gave out from under him, he fell to his knees. "MY BOYS..." He sobbed.

The skelebros also fell to their knees refusing to let go of Gaster's hands. Gaster looked down at his hands, that were holding on tight to his sons'. He was solid and no longer goopy, he was back. He felt so guilty that he put his children though that. His guilt only grew when he looked up to his sons and saw that they were clearly no longer children but adults, they were all grown up. He'd missed all of Sans's teenage years and pretty much all of Papyrus's childhood.

"I'M SORRY!" He sobbed out, "OH I'M SO SORRY! WHAT HAVE I DONE?! I'M SORRY... SORRY FOR EVERYTHING!"

The brothers to began to cry. They let go of their father's hands and threw their arms around him. Gaster returned the hug, pulling his sons closer to him as he kept apologising over and over.

Eventually the skeleton family calmed down and let go of each other. Gaster stared at his boys and wiped his tears away, "I'M SORRY," he said again.

"IT'S OKAY!" Papyrus said, "WHAT HAPPENED WASN'T YOUR FAULT! WE'RE SO HAPPY YOU'RE BACK!"

"BUT... I MISSED YOUR WHOLE LIVES! I LEFT YOU ALONE FOR SO LONG. I'M A TERRIBLE FATHER, I SHOULDN'T HAVE-"

"dad, stop. it doesn't matter. what happened, happened. you're back now and we forgive you."

Gaster began to sob again, "MY BOYS, I'M SO PROUD OF YOU. I SWEAR I'LL MAKE IT UP TO YOU, I'LL NEVER LEAVE YOU TWO AGAIN. YOU BOTH MEAN THE WORLD TO ME."

Papyrus stood up and offered a hand to Gaster, "LETS GO HOME, WE'RE LIVING ON THE SURFACE NOW, BY THE WAY."

Gaster gasped as he took his son's hand and pulled himself up. "THE SURFACE? SO DID ASGORE KILL-"

"nope," Sans interrupted again, he stood up as well and pointed at Frisk. "this is frisk, they saved us all."

Gaster looked them up and down, they looked familiar to him but he was forgetting everything he saw in the Void; the world once again fixing itself, Gaster couldn't know anything about what happened when he was lost. He smiled and tried to step forward only to stumble without his cane, luckily Papyrus was there to catch him and allowed Gaster to lean on him as he stepped forward. "IT'S A PLEASURE TO MEET YOU, FRISK," Gaster said as he offered his hand. "I'M DOCTOR WINGDINGS GASTER. PLEASE, JUST CALL ME GASTER."

Frisk smiled as well and took his hand. "Nice to meet you too."

Sans had never been happier, everything was alright, everything was finally normal again. "man, we have so much to catch up on."

Gaster chuckled, "CLEARLY! JUST LOOK AT HOW TALL PAPYRUS IS! MY LITTLE BABY'S GOTTEN SO BIG!"

Papyrus laughed and straightened up. "OF COURSE I'M TALL! YOU ARE AND YOU'RE STILL TALLER THAN ME!"

Gaster shrugged, "THAT'S TRUE BUT YOU'RE STILL SO TALL! AND SANS!" Gaster turned to his oldest and narrowed his eyes, Sans couldn't tell if he was squinting because he couldn't see without his glasses or if he was giving him a dirty look. "...I SEE YOU GOT FAT."

"hey!" Sans said raising his hand to his chest as if wounded, "i'm not fat, just big boned."

"THAT'S THE SAME THING, BROTHER!"

"it is not."

"IT IS FOR SKELETONS! I KEEP TELLING YOU TO GO ON A DIET AND STOP EATING AT GRILLBY'S ALL THE TIME!" Papyrus scolded his older brother.

Gaster laughed as his sons' bickered over greasy food, "I'VE MISSED YOU BOYS SO MUCH!"

"we missed you too."

"...HOW LONG AS IT BEEN?" Gaster dared to ask. "FOR ME IF WAS FOREVER AND AT THE SAME TIME MERELY SECONDS."

The skelebros looked at each other before Papyrus answered, "IT'S BEEN FOURTEEN YEARS."

Papyrus had to tighten his grip as he felt his father almost faint. "FOURTEEN YEARS? THAT'S SO LONG, I'M SO SORRY... OH GOD... MY BABIES ARE ADULTS..."

"this must be pretty weird huh?" Sans asked. "i mean one moment i'm twelve, the next i'm twenty six and one moment paps is five, the next he's nineteen..."

Gaster nodded, "IT'S SO WEIRD, WE REALLY NEED TO CATCH UP. I WANT TO HEAR ALL ABOUT YOUR LIVES."

"LET'S GO HOME. SANS," Papyrus looked at his brother, "WILL YOU?"

Sans smiled and looked to Frisk, "ready, kiddo?"

Frisk nodded, they were feeling a little awkward just standing and watching the reunited family.

They took a shortcut home.

* * *

Once back at the skelebros house they gave Gaster a quick tour and let him borrow some of Papyrus's clothes to change into. Then they let him sit down and rest while Papyrus cooked them something to eat.

Gaster had little time to rest, however, as the Dreemurrs were calling as were Grillby's family. The Followers were as well, even the ones that had fallen with Gaster were back. Everyone remembered Gaster and had questions. Gaster did his best to answer them and apologise for his mistakes. He was exhausted but he didn't want to sleep; he wanted to see his friends again, after all it had been so long since they'd seen him and Gaster was too excited.

It wasn't long before Asgore came rushing to the skeletons' house, banging on the door. Papyrus answered it and with a cheerful smile he lead Asgore to the living room. Before anyone could say anything or stop him Asgore rushed forward and pulled Gaster up and into a big hug. The old scientist let out a yelp of surprise before he laughed and hugged his friend back.

"I'm so sorry!" Asgore blurted out as he let go his old friend.

Gaster looked up at him, confused. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN _YOU'RE _SORRY? I'M THE ONE THAT'S SORRY. I DID SOMETHING STUPID, I PUT THE LIVES OF MY FOLLOWERS AND MY OWN SONS AT RISK. I... I COULD'VE TORN THIS UNIVERSE APART!"

Asgore shook his head and once again he hugged Gaster tightly. "No, it's all my fault. I wanted to free monsters by killing humans. I should've listened to Toriel. I should've tried to help you find another way. Instead I pushed you to act rashly. If I wasn't killing you wouldn't have felt so pressured. You could've taken more time, you could've found something else. You got erased because of me! Your sons became orphans because of me! I am so, so sorry, Gaster! I'm such a fool!"

Gaster sighed and shook his head and hugged Asgore back. "LET'S JUST SAY WE WERE BOTH STUPID. I'M BACK NOW AND I'LL _NEVER _DO ANYTHING EVEN REMOTELY LIKE THAT EVER AGAIN."

Asgore nodded and eventually he let go of his friend.

Papyrus then jumped into action, "I'LL GO MAKE TEA! WE HAVE SO MUCH TO TALK ABOUT!"

"sounds good, bro," Sans muttered. He'd been looking down at his phone the whole time and he didn't bother looking up.

"SANS GET OFF OF YOUR PHONE! DAD'S BACK! YOU SHOULDN'T BE TEXTING!"

Sans shrugged, "it's grillbz, he's asking me a lot of questions about what happened and how he and others have suddenly gotten their memories back. he said that as soon as he can find someone to cover for him, he's coming here. looks like asgore's not the only one who's just showing up to talk to dad... oh, tori's just sent a text, she's coming as well."

Papyrus sighed and bounced off back to the kitchen. "WELL IN THAT CASE WE NEED TO MAKE LOTS OF TEA! FRISK, WANT TO HELP?"

Frisk happily agreed and ran after Papyrus to help.

It wasn't long before Grillby and Toriel arrived. They also hugged Gaster and told him how happy they were to see him again. Before long more and more people began to show up at the Gaster household. It ended up as a spontaneous Welcome Home party. It ended up lasting quite a while and Papyrus and Frisk had to make a fast run to the supermarket for party food.

Even though it was all so sudden, Gaster didn't seem to mind. The party really confirmed to him that he was home, he was really back! He found himself enjoying it, it was so long since he had felt so happy and not just because he'd been trapped in the Void. He'd been depressed for a long time before the accident. He still felt hugely guiltily for what he put his sons through but seeing them happy made him happy. His sons had grown into fine young men, even if Sans was lazier than ever. They were happy, they had friends and a big house. They were on the surface, there was peace.

It was all so perfect but Gaster knew it wouldn't be easy to adjust to such a perfect life when all his life he'd been unhappy; war, trapped, constant fear someone or something would hurt his kids... He make a metal note that he should seek help. He didn't want to put his sons through anymore pain. This time he was going to think of them first, he was going to give them what they really needed not what he thought was for the best. He wanted to be better.

Things calmed down the next day and Gaster got to spend time with his sons and they spent the next few days catching up. It took a while but soon everything was becoming somewhat normal again. It soon felt as if Gaster had never left. Gaster loved his sons so much and it didn't take him long to begin doting on them again. He really did enjoy spending time with them and felt so horrible that he'd missed so much. He tired not to let it bother him but it did, especially with Papyrus, the little five year old was now nineteen and Gaster felt horrible about it no matter how much Papyrus said it was okay and that they could just make up for lost time now. That was what Gaster did, he spent as much time with both of his sons as he could. He soon settled into his new life.

He tried to retire but quickly got bored, after all his children were grown up and had jobs of their own. He went back to work as a scientist, working with human scientists and convicting Sans to come work with them as well. They rebuild The Core on the surface and continued research to improve it. A lot of Gaster's soul research helped a lot of people and he kept trying to learn more, not to end human life but to try to save it by curing and healing.

He also began to research the multiverse. It didn't take him long to built a new, safe machine in order to travel to other worlds. He and Sans made sure to go to all the nice universes with good Gasters to tell them how they did it so they to could get their Gasters back.

Sometimes Gaster had nightmares of what he'd seen in the Void but he never remembered it once he woke. He'd sometimes have a panic attack if left in the dark or in a small space. He had issues but he had his boys and his many friends, old and new to help him. He was also seeing a therapist as well which he found to be really helpful. Despite all the nightmares and fears, Gaster was so happy with his life.

He loved his job, he loved his family, he loved his friends and now he was there for them. He was back in their lives. After all the suffering and pain, Gaster was finally happy and he swore to never leave again. He never forgot those he lost; he would always miss his parents, siblings, in-laws and niblings but he had his sons. Two precious little miracles. He had a lot of regrets but making his sons wasn't one of them. They were the best things he'd ever made, they gave him a reason to life, they lit up his life and he'd love them no matter what. He was living on the surface, he was with his children, he was happy.

Doctor Wingdings Gaster finally had his happy ending.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is the longest fanfic I've ever written. I'm honestly surprised with how much I managed to write haha. It's also the first fanfic I've written that didn't have any ships or smut/implied smut because when I started this I didn't ship any Undertale characters. I honestly found Undertale ships weird because not human... Yeah, now I ship Sansby, Papyton, and cute non-smutty Kingdings...
> 
> I'm really proud of how this turned out. I know it's nothing great and probably full of spelling/grammar mistakes (damn dyslexia) but for once I wasn't cringing at my own writing. Anyways hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> I'll probably write more Undertale fanfics but it'll most likely be ships...


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